Party Tricks
by GoXC
Summary: In which Clint and Tasha don't have a "thing," Darcy asks Clint to flex, and Stark throws a really boring party. Come join the fun! Clint/Darcy. Rated for language. Movie/Comic - verse. **Updated Weekly**
1. Chapter 1

**Party Tricks**

**1**

* * *

Clint did not want to be here.

Parties weren't his thing. Groups weren't his thing. Social interaction wasn't his thing.

But Tony, damn him, had said that he was too much of a loner, that they needed to bond as a team. Clint blocked the rest of the bullshit that spouted from Tony's mouth but he was pretty sure there was a jab at his social skills in there somewhere.

It had taken a sharp look from Steve and a redirection from Natasha to keep Clint's knife tucked safely away and out of the playboy's face.

That hadn't stopped Steve from politely -always politely- suggesting that he come.

Upon later inspection - like while he was leaning against the wall at said party - Clint would decide that he'd come in a moment of insanity. There was really no other explanation.

Because he was the guy that hid in the shadows, on the rooftop. Alone. And he was okay with that.

They were all here celebrating the Avenger's victory anyway. Clint didn't feel much like being involved. He hadn't felt like a part of the team since the Chitauri invasion.

And where had he been when they were all saving the world this last time? On a shitty surveillance mission that a green agent couldn't fuck up if they tried.

No one would ever know but him and the team. No one would notice that Hawkeye was missing. He was always helping from the shadows, protecting from a perch. Never to be noticed, never to be missed.

He locked his scorn away in that part of his brain reserved for pain. It had gotten so very large over the years.

Pulling himself to now and here, he scanned the room again from his vantage point in the corner. Ever watchful. His gaze settled on Agent Romanov who was conversing with a young agent. A young male agent.

Everyone assumes Natasha and Clint have a thing. And maybe they let them think that. But the truth is, they're too alike in the wrong ways and not alike enough in the right ones.

Clint's a smart guy but it took him longer than it should've to figure that out.

But he's let those thoughts go, cut em loose, compartmentalised. He's not really looking now, but the dating pool for a SHIELD employee is devastatingly small, especially when fellow assassins are out.

So dating isn't at the top of his list, it's more around the middle. Somewhere above "don't die" and somewhere below "own a dog someday."

He averted his gaze and decided to watch the Cap trying to ward off a very adamant fanboy.

He found it equal parts amusing and annoying to watch Captain America try to exist in the present day and age. The guy was level headed and straight laced - qualities that Clint simultaneously admired, hated, and envied - but so very easy to get one over on.

"You look like you're happy to be here." An unfamiliar voice interrupted his thoughts.

It wasn't that he hadn't seen her walking his way. He just never expected it was to talk to him.

* * *

Darcy had been pretty excited when Stark had extended an invitation to her for one of his infamous parties. Okay, technically Pepper Potts had extended the invitation, but she wasn't going to split hairs.

The fact was she was kind of a nobody in SHIELD. She wasn't a genius, she wasn't an agent, and she damn well wasn't a superhero. She was a glorified paper pusher, there only because she knew too much, and the glory was mostly in her own head.

But attending a Tony Stark party... That was the kind of thing she considered a perk of the job. Of course it was probably more by association that she was invited. She knew Jane, who knew Thor, who knew Stark, who knew Jane, who knew her... And Pepper was in there somewhere. Anyway, she worked for SHIELD, she knew people, she wasn't bragging.

Seriously, there was nothing to brag about. All the cool things that had happened to her were a complete accident. She didn't honestly think she had done something really awesome in a past life like save starving kittens, or rescue a drowning kid, or help a drowning kid with a basket full of starving kittens. If she had, she'd be a freakin superhero genius SHIELD agent and _not_ a paper pusher.

Digressing... She took another gulp of her drink, scrunched her face up as it slid down her throat. This certainly wasn't what she expected out of a Stark party. There was no awesome music, there were no wild displays of Iron man's stupidity, and there were no super famous people.

There were superheroes who were kind of famous but that wasn't the same.

Instead, there were a lot of idiots like the one currently talking to her about God knows what. She certainly didn't. She let her gaze wander around the room, the asshat talking to her would never notice. He wasn't exactly looking at her eyes.

She saw Jane gossiping with Pepper, Bruce talking animatedly with Tony, and a hell of a lot of people she didn't know. Everyone seemed relatively engaged, except one person. She zeroed in on the Avenger called Hawkeye. His stance was stiff and his eyes flickered toward the exit occasionally like he was thinking about darting for it any minute. Probably in some crazy-awesome acrobatic move. He looked as out of place and uncomfortable as she felt.

Why, she didn't know. He was an Avenger. He'd just helped save the freakin Earth. That was why they were here at this lame-ass party, right?

She didn't really know the guy, but in her opinion, the archer got the short stick when it came to the Avengers. He didn't have superpowers, wasn't genetically engineered, didn't have a suit of awesomeness, he just had skills. And yet he seemed somewhat undervalued from her perspective. People were off getting Stark shaped goatees, painting their faces green, buying spangly clothes. But no one was taking up archery or... However they'd show their love of the Hawk.

Yet he didn't seem to mind. Maybe he didn't know how badass he was? Maybe he just didn't care.

Without so much as an, "Excuse me," she abruptly walked away from the guy talking to her and over toward Clint.

"You look like you're happy to be here." It wasn't an introduction, but it just kind of popped out of her mouth when she neared the archer.

He turned to her, still generally surveying the room. His face betrayed no emotion, but he said, "I saw you making faces while Matthews was talking to you. You're in the same boat."

Wow, he really lived up to the name Hawkeye, she never even noticed him looking her way. "If the boat is the _S.S. Get Me The Fuck Outta Here_," she quipped.

"That's the one."

Darcy smirked. Her insides were excited at the prospect of someone she could stand to have a conversation with. "And that guy... Matthews or whatever... He thinks he's the freakin king of aerowhatever design and blah blah blah. Like I care."

Clint seemed vaguely amused. He turned his full attention on her. "Stark seems to think he's pretty bright."

She snorted. "Not bright enough to look at my face when he's talking to me."

Clint almost smiled.

Encouraged, she continued. "Speaking of Stark, I thought his parties were supposed to be fun and... Ya know, not boring."

His eyes shot toward Tony's "not-girlfriend" - according to the man himself anyway. "He let Pepper handle this one."

"Ah well," she swirled the ice around in her drink, "At least there's alcohol." And Darcy had been enjoying it. Not only because it was expensive and damn good, but because with all the jackasses chatting her up, she needed every drop.

She continued. "Half the people here scare the shit out of me, anyway." Her gaze _might_ have drifted toward Natasha. "The other half were sick the day God gave out social skills and a sense of humor."

His face tightened slightly and Darcy wondered if she had said something wrong. Was he offended that she insulted his coworkers? Or maybe he thought she was insulting him.

"You're neither though," she sipped her drink, trying to look cool, or at least less of a fool - he was a superhero! - and waited for his response.

"I'm not scary?" He smirked and the tightness was gone.

"Nope. Not since Tony showed everyone that picture where you're holding a pink sparkly bow."

He raised an eyebrow. Damn it, Darcy. Stop insulting him.

"It was photoshopped," she added.

"You're kidding," he said flatly.

She giggled at the look on his face, or maybe it was the alcohol. "You can't tell me you're surprised. It's Tony. He did one of the Cap too. His shield was colored like a German flag. He wasn't amused."

She realized she was bordering on babbling and wondered if he was getting annoyed.

"I'm Darcy," she thrust her hand out at him, still grinning.

"Clint," he took her hand and she watched his bicep flex as she shook it a bit too vigorously.

"I know," she said distractedly. Did anyone else realize this man had really yummy arms?

"You're Jane Foster's intern, correct?"

"Was. I work for SHIELD now, kind of. And Jane. It's boring as hell but pays nicely. I can actually buy songs for my iPod now instead of downloading them from- Shit... I didn't say... Can I get fired for that?" She glanced around, but no one else seemed tuned in to their conversation.

Clint shrugged, "Probably," but his slightly upturned lips told her he was joking.

She sat her empty glass down on a nearby table, crossed her arms over her chest. She had arrived at a monumental decision and several alcoholic drinks were telling her she should share. "You seem like a cool guy. I'm not saying I'd play darts with you cause that would really hurt my ego, but I suspect that everyone else here is really a robot. Even Jane. Especially Jane. But not you. You're... Your..." She picked her glass back up and held it out, "Can you hold this?"

He looked at her in mild confusion.

"Nevermind, what the hell... Can you just... flex for me?"

He actually smiled then and she thought that maybe it was his version of a laugh. God, it was beautiful. Seriously, was anyone else seeing this?

For some ridiculous reason, he obliged and flexed his left arm. Darcy valiantly contained her drool but her traitorous arm reached out. Just one little touch...

And then it hit her like a ton of sobering bricks: She was acting like an idiot.

"I'm... Sorry," she stuttered out, yanking her hand back before it touched his glorious muscle. She wanted to go hide in that janitorial closet she frequented whenever she needed to listen to her iPod.

"For what? This is the most entertaining conversation I've had all evening. Maybe all week."

More words tumbled out of her mouth, "That's what I'm afraid of. That you're laughing at me. I'm like a one woman circus attraction." Was she always this sharey? Christ, she needed to stop opening her mouth.

Clint's face lost all traces of amusement and he stared at her in a way that made her wonder if she had sprouted another head. She delicately reached up to feel for one but all was well. Okay, maybe her hair was getting a little frizzy but that seemed relatively unimportant at the time.

"I'm sorry, did I say something? I'm over sharing aren't I? I really need another drink."

Clint had decided somewhere in the last several seconds that he'd had quite enough social interaction for what probably amounted to the year. Darcy had managed to remind him that he didn't really play well with others. He had gained a great deal of respect over the past few years as Hawkeye, but it was too easy to remember being the butt of everyone's jokes.

Of course, she had no idea what was going on in the archer's head.

"I wouldn't." He spoke at last and Darcy took a moment to realize what he was talking about. Drinks, another drink.

She shrugged. He was probably right. She should probably go home and google videos of the Chitauri invasion. Maybe there were some good shots of Clint's arms. If past experience held true, she was never going to see them up close again. This - admittedly gorgeous - man was going to run very far away from her and never look back.

She counted it a success that she hadn't mentioned Loki in her apparent word vomit, however. And... Crap, now she was thinking about it. She needed to get away before she said something damaging.

"Well Clint," she placed a hand on his shoulder, "It's been real."

He stiffened noticeably and Darcy thought for a second he was going to body slam her into the wall and hold her at knife point for touching him. She would never admit to not completely hating the idea.

But then he took her hand from his shoulder and squeezed it gently, "I would never laugh at you, Darcy."

She blinked in astonishment. He looked sincere and serious and look at those eyes and... He was talking.

"... A cab?"

"Huh?" She said stupidly.

"Do you need me to call you a cab?" He repeated. He was still holding her hand between his and it was hard to concentrate and...

"Is it hot in here?" Shit. Did she say that out loud?

His lips twitched slightly and she suspected she was making it mighty difficult for him to make good on his promise of not laughing at her.

She yanked her hand from his and smoothed her hair down. "No... Never mind. It's good... I'm good."

She turned on her heel and exited the building as fast as her foggy brain would allow. She made a wrong turn twice before making it outside to the cool night air. Then the full force of her mortification hit her.

She just made a big-ass fool of herself in front of a super-freakin-hero.

She really needed some ice cream. Cause let's face it, she was still googling Hawkeye vids.

* * *

I've almost completed this fic so it will be updated weekly.

Cheers!


	2. Chapter 2

**Party Tricks**

**2**

* * *

Darcy woke up the next morning thinking about Clint, wishing she hadn't made such a fool of herself. There was something intriguing about him and she hated herself for scaring him off before she had the chance to discover it.

The next several weeks did little to quell her feelings on the matter. It was more a vague feeling that she had missed out on something, like she had driven right by a road she should've turned down.

But she had never seen much of the agent before, and she didn't now.

She considered asking about him, really did, but it would've been out of place. It would've seemed weird, might've raised some flags, or at least some gossip. She didn't want that and she especially didn't want Clint hearing of it.

So she did her job, tried to forget about it. She was mostly successful. It was just the occasional gnaw of regret, the brief thumping of her heart at the mention of Clint or Hawkeye or Agent Barton.

She refused to admit that maybe she had a crush on the guy and maybe it had been developing long before she chatted him up at the most boring party in the history of the universe.

But it was just that: Denial.

She sighed, tearing into her second granola bar. She was having the most awful day ever.

She had woken up an hour late because her alarm clock hadn't made a sound because her power was off because apparently you had to pay those things every month. Who knew? Darcy knew, she just had a huge freakin memory lapse and forgot.

As a result she had a very cold shower, no breakfast (how was she supposed to toast her bagels?), and a generally foul morning.

Things didn't improve much when she got to work. For starters she was pretty damn late, and Jane had a major hissy fit about it. Then some clumsy idiot spilled coffee all over the ridiculously long report she had just finished typing. Seriously, it was like a novel.

Now she was forced to skip lunch to re-do said report, gnawing at granola bars between keystrokes like a starved gerbil.

And if one more person called her Marcy she was going to scream.

Her cell phone quacked from under a pile of paper. She growled under her breath. She was _this_ close to decapitating the next person that bothered her.

Turning on her phone, she saw a text from an unknown number. Actually it was a blocked number, which was just a little more interesting.

She opened it to reveal a picture of none other than Clint. He was flexing one of his arms with a smug smile on his face. The awkward angle and absence of his other arm made it look like he had taken it himself.

The text underneath read: _H__ere's a picture, it'll last longer_

Darcy's shock melted into a tingly excitement. She glanced around, like someone might see her smiling like an idiot.

She texted back: _Clint?_

_What gave it away?_

She mentally slapped herself. Yeah, that wasn't the dumbest thing she'd ever said but it was up there.

_How'd you get my number?_ she responded.

_Shield agent,_ he said, as if that was a complete explanation.

She nodded to herself, she guessed that made sense. But still... Why the hell was he texting her.

Her phone quacked again, interrupting her thoughts. _A little birdy told me you were having a bad day_

A smile crept on to her face, then she quickly glanced around conspiratorially. Who would've told him that? Better yet, why would they have told _him_?

She made a mental note to interrogate Jane later and maybe check her coffee mug for bugs before returning her attention to her phone. She stared at it for several seconds, trying to think of a not-stupid response.

_Kind of,_ she finally keyed in and sent._ But the picture helped,_ Her face twisted in thought and she erased the last part. Well, it had. She typed it again and sent it, sucking in a deep breath.

_That was the plan_

She pulled the picture up and looked at it again, grinned at the archer's expression. She studied the background. Behind him was a dusty looking tapestry with pots of various shapes and sizes littered around it.

_Where are you?_ she asked,_ That pot on the right would look killer in my dinky little apartment._ After she sent it, she let her head fall on the keyboard of her computer.

It was a very good thing he wasn't right in front of her. She was able to ponder her responses this way and she still managed to sound stupid.

_Sorry, classified,_ he sent back. G_otta go, Darcy. I hope your day gets better._

She started to say it was, but it felt cheesy and fluffy and lame and... Why the hell did he text her?

/thanks/ she sent back and then she tossed her phone away like it was a traitorous piece of electronics.

Her day did get better, but it took her twice as long to type up that report. She couldn't go long without reopening the picture of Clint.

She was so screwed.

* * *

Darcy spent the next couple of days wondering who could've contacted Clint about her. She wasn't really very close with anyone in SHIELD except Jane. But she din't think Jane and Clint were even acquainted, much less buddies.

She tried to come at it another way...

Who was Clint tight with? She thought...

And thought...

She figured he was supposed to be cozy with the other Avengers, but it didn't seem that way. Just look at the party, he was like a damn outcast. Or maybe he just liked it that way.

Or maybe her office was bugged.

Well duh, it was SHIELD but she doubted she did anything important enough to warrant them listening in on her life. And that still didn't answer the question of why they would tell Clint and why the hell would he text her?

He was Clint freakin Hawkeye, world's best archer, superhero, guy who she'd made a big ass out of herself in front of.

Also, guy who should be staying far away from her craziness.

Maybe it _had_ been Jane, she was always trying to set her up with guys like she was somehow an expert now that she'd scored a buff dude from another planet or whatever. Which didn't really seem fair since Thor had fallen out of the sky. Literally. Jane didn't do a damn thing except run into the guy. She so should've taken credit for that. Digressing...

Yeah, that seemed like Jane now that she thought about it. And maybe she'd felt guilty for chewing her out that morning. It had to be.

And maybe she and Clint were somehow closer now that she'd hooked up with the hammer wielding guy. Or maybe she'd seen them together at the party.

Maybe both.

But still... Why the hell had he texted her?

* * *

_Thanks for reading everyone, I hope you continue to follow. Stuff _will_ happen :)_

_I've been writing on this for quite a while, but It's my first stab at this cast. I was trying to finish before I put it up, but thought _"What the heck!,"_ so here you are! _

_Thanks for the reviews, follows, and favs. Drop me a note and let me know who you think Clint's informant is. :) _

_Cheers. _


	3. Chapter 3

**Party Tricks**

**3**

* * *

Three days after the texting incident and Darcy had still somehow managed to not print Clint's picture out - poster size - and plaster it in front of her desk.

And she definitely was _not_ currently on Snapfish choosing an extra glossy finish and other particulars on said picture. No, she was totally working.

Totally.

But if she were, hypothetically, getting a life-size poster of Clint, where would she hang it? Maybe if she put it on the ceiling no one would ever notice...

A loud thumping noise on her desk jostled her out of her daydream. She glanced to the left to see a decorative pot filling her vision.

She followed it up and her eyes settled on Clint, who was standing there looking equal parts expectant and smug.

Darcy blinked once, twice, again. She was dreaming, definitely. She really needed to lay off the - Shit, dream Clint was talking.

"- wrong one?"

"Huh?"

His expression changed to one hundred percent smugness. The bastard. Her dream Clint never looked... Ahem, _would never _look that smug.

"Is this the wrong one?" He repeated.

Her face must've shown how utterly confused she was.

"There were six pots _on my right_," he continued.

Oh. _Oh_. The pot. She started nodding because her mouth still wasn't cooperating.

He looked amused, his eyes shining through what she knew was fatigue.

"Thank you," she managed. Should she stand up? Would hugging him be too much? She'd like to hug him.

What the hell. She shot up and rounded her desk, practically throwing herself on the archer.

He lightly, hesitantly hugged her back.

"You didn't have to," her words were muffled by his body. What? She wasn't pulling her face away from his chest just to talk. Did she look stupid?

He chuckled, the first she'd ever heard him laugh. She felt it rumble through his chest and reluctantly she pulled back to look at him. When she did, Clint let her go completely. Damn it.

"The lady almost didn't sell it to me. I told her it was for a girl and she finally gave in," he punctuated his words with a wink.

Darcy laughed, "Liar, you probably just did that," she gestured at him. "You smiled and winked and I bet she gave it to you."

He shook his head, a hint of a smile still pulling at his lips. "I'm not Thor... Or Tony."

Darcy's face scrunched up, "I've seen Thor wink... I should say _try to wink_ at Jane. It looks like he's having a spasm. And Tony... When he does shit like that it's tacky. When you do it it's kind of... Bond-esque."

His eyebrows raised, "Bond-esque?"

"Yeah, like James Bond. Ya know, it's sexy."

He looked almost... Embarrassed. Darcy grinned triumphantly. Hah, now the shoe was on the other foot... Or the other person's foot. Whatever, she embarrassed him.

She decided to be merciful and change the subject. "And this is the exact one I was talking about," she turned to inspect the - her - pot.

She realized after a few minutes that Clint had gotten quiet. It reminded her of his mood change at the party. She had assumed it was something she'd said, but now she was wondering.

She turned around to see him blank faced. He looked a little like he'd zoned out.

"Been off saving the world?" she asked quietly, unsure if she should even disturb him.

His eyes snapped to hers. He ran a quick hand through his hair, like he was trying to shake something off and Darcy frowned.

"Nothing nearly so important," he said.

"Did you come straight here? You look tired. I mean... You don't look bad you just look..." she paused, "Tired in a non-bad way."

He looked himself again, or at least a little less... Something. She hadn't figured out what. "Yeah."

"You should go rest up then."

He smiled again but it looked forced. "I will."

She thanked him again and they said their goodbyes. When he'd left she plopped back down in her chair and stared at her pot.

Did he really bring that back from God knows where for _her_? It didn't make sense. There just wasn't any way Clint freakin Barton was into her.

Maybe it had been a dream...

* * *

Clint had one more visit to make before he crawled back to the tower for some rest. He needed to talk to his "little birdy."

He cornered her easily and she looked like she'd been expecting him.

"Welcome back. Always a pleasure to see you alive."

He wasn't in the mood for small talk. "Why'd you tell me about Darcy?"

She smirked. "Shouldn't you be thanking me?"

His face hardened, "Tell me."

"I know you Clint. It's that simple."

"Nothing is that simple with you."

She ran a hand through her hair. "Not everything is lies and espionage, Clint. Can't I help you find a little happiness? You deserve it."

He merely glared at her. He was _not_ buying it.

"Don't you trust me?" A smile curved her lips. It was a low blow. Of course he trusted her. Whether the feeling was mutual was another story.

But this time, it just felt wrong. Would she lead him astray? He didn't know. Not right now, anyway.

"I'm too tired for this shit,"he muttered and walked away.

* * *

_Hey guys, this is a shortish chapter so this is basically a bonus mid-week update. Yay!_

_Any new guesses on who the informant is? For the person who guessed Coulson, he's not going to show up in this fic as he's pretty much not with the living anymore and I'm sticking with that. But he is badass, so maybe in a future fic? _

_Until this weekend..._

_Cheers!_


	4. Chapter 4

**Party Tricks**

**4**

* * *

As much as Darcy wanted them to, things didn't progress between her and Clint over the next few weeks. In fact, she saw her usual, very little of him.

Once or twice she'd passed him in the halls and he'd given her a smile or a wink. Sometimes both. But never anything more.

And that sudden mood shift he'd taken not once, but twice now, in her presence kept popping up in her mind like an unwelcome rerun.

She couldn't help wondering if she was the cause.

She sighed and sent a quick glance behind her toward Jane's office. The astrophysicist was alight with not so subtle excitement. The god of thunder was coming back from Asgard tonight and suffice it to say, she was distracted.

Thoroughly convinced that her "boss" wasn't paying attention - she had been staring at her screen for over half an hour and she never looked quite that dreamy reading data- Darcy googled Clint Barton.

Surprisingly little came up. Something about a violinist in Utah. There was actually a small chance it was the same person - SHIELD agent and all - but the accompanying photo ruled that out. Unless, of course, Clint used to be a foot taller and red headed. She doubted it.

There was an old newspaper article that looked interesting. It seemed to be about a circus or carnival or something. Weird, but probably just another knock-off Clint. She scanned down the article, already prepared to move onto the next hit. And then her eyes caught on a word: Hawkeye.

She scrolled back up and started over, slower this time.

The article was from a small newspaper in Iowa. It was a miracle it had even made it on the Internet. The short story was about a small carnival coming to the local town.

The paragraph with Hawkeye in it was short, only briefly mentioning him as a circus act. "The Amazing Hawkeye," was an archer with what they boasted as supernatural aim.

Coincidence? Darcy wasn't sure, but she was intrigued.

One of the photos was of an archer, a teenage boy maybe, aiming for something out of the picture. It was too small and far away for Darcy to even hazard a guess whether it was Clint.

The rest of the hits were about as useful as the first and Darcy began to feel guilty about the whole ordeal. Was it wrong to snoop out information about a person behind their back?

SHIELD did it all the time. Clint could've even done it to her - on a SHIELD database - but she doubted it.

Besides, the last thing she wanted to do was be like SHIELD. Sure, she worked for them, but you can't just confiscate a person's iPod and expect them to forgive and forget so easily.

Whatever. She closed her browser and glanced back at Jane. She was still in happy-Thor-land. Darcy rolled her eyes.

But maybe getting information from his friends was okay...

She grinned and skipped into the astrophysicist's office.

"Jane," she said cheerfully.

The woman jumped, pressed something on her keyboard and looked up. "What is it, Darcy? I'm doing... Things."

Right. Things. Did Jane think she was fooling anyone with that oh-so-eloquent excuse?

"So... the big Thoreunion is tonight."

Jane's frown eased into a more pleasant look. _Like an open, large-print book_, Darcy thought.

Thor's main lady nodded, "He's been gone so long. Doesn't it seem like forever?"

Well that wasn't how Darcy would've put it. But for the sake of appeasing Jane she agreed. "Yeah I really... miss the big... guy."

Luckily Jane was a bit too self absorbed to notice Darcy's shitty lying skills. "Me too," she murmured to herself.

Hoping to head off another daydream, she moved to sit on the corner of Jane's desk and spoke up. "It's cool if I come, yeah?"

"Course Darcy, I know you wanna see him again too."

Damn right she did. But not him Thor. Him Clint. And his very informative friends.

Now if she could just learn the art of subtlety in the next five hours she'd be good to go.

* * *

Darcy hadn't expected the awkwardness.

The Thoreunion consisted of only Steve, Bruce, Tony, Thor, Jane, and her.

She wasn't especially cozy with any of the Avengers so it was, in a word, awkward.

Of course awkward was the typical word of the day where Thor was concerned. The man - god, demigod, whatever, he was buff - oozed blissful ignorance and a general knack for saying stupid things in a very loud voice.

That, coupled with the fact that Clint was a no show pretty much drowned Darcy's parade.

Thor and Jane were doing the huggy mushy eyed thing, Bruce was adjusting his glasses in that way that made him look perpetually nervous, Steve was looking on politely, and Tony was looking at Darcy like he was about to come and talk to her.

His look promised she would not enjoy it.

She shifted her gaze, hoping to put him off. But Stark wasn't one to be discouraged.

He sauntered over in that way that he thought was subtle and sexy. "Clint's training," he said, like she'd asked.

"Okay," she said slowly, deliberately. She hoped she was exuding an air of, "I couldn't care less where that Barton guy is." Judging by the look on Stark's face she was failing with a capital F.

"I saw you two flirting it up at the party," he said with a smirk.

Darcy blinked at him. She so wasn't taking that bait. "I've been meaning to ask, why was your party so lame?"

Tony looked offended for a second before recovering. "I'll get you a comment card," he snapped with a roll of his eyes. "That wasn't my fault. I happen to throw the kick-assest parties around. But Pepper said image and wet blankets and killjoys. Blah blah blah. I tune that woman out half the time."

"Sounds like she's got you whipped," she flicked her wrist and smiled. "Ka-cheh."

"Har har. Don't change the subject. I know you've got the googly eyes for Hawkeye." He wiggled his fingers at her when he said googly.

It was Darcy's turn to roll her eyes. "I'd heard you were a little delusional but I'd honestly thought you were too self absorbed to turn your delusions outward."

Stark actually chuckled then, surprising her. "I like you, Darcy."

"I think Pepper would be jealous, but I appreciate the sentiment."

"Cute." He smiled like she'd just proved his point further and she decided the feeling was mutual.

Tony wandered off to bother someone else and Darcy was one again relegated to outsider.

Thor had begun regaling a battle story to them. He was like a freakin Viking. Someone should tell him overt bragging went out of style a few centuries ago.

Uninterested in the tale, she sighed and glanced up at the ceiling. It was the dropped type with exposed beams and ductwork. She squinted, thinking she saw something. Her eyes focused on a black blob that shouldn't have been there. She blinked and frowned before she realized it was a person crouching on the beams.

He was dressed in all black with a balaclava pulled over his face. He pulled it up from the bottom and grinned at her, put a silencing finger to his lips.

She averted her gaze back to the group. No one seemed to have noticed her discovery. She glanced back up but the figure was gone.

Huh. Weird. Apparently she was going crazy.

Moments later Clint came strolling through the door. His eyes zeroed in on Darcy and he shot her a quick wink before anyone else noticed his presence.

"The Hawk has descended from his nest!" Thor announced loudly. Darcy cringed but Clint smirked and joined in the greetings for a brief moment before slipping away.

"I heard you've got googly eyes for me," he said low enough that no one but Darcy could hear.

Her insides kicked up, ready to defend, deny, deflect. But then she paused and narrowed her eyes. How did he...

Her eyes shot up toward the ceiling and Clint grinned, confirming her suspicion. "You were..."

He nodded and crossed his yummy arms over his chest.

"How long?"

"All day."

Her mind was rapidly trying to recover what he'd overheard, even as her mouth said, "Tony said you were training."

"I was."

Her lips curved slightly as she thought of what Thor announced. Sometimes the big guy was dead on.

"Sneaky bastard," she said.

"That's me."

"I can't believe no one noticed you."

"You'd be surprised," he said. "But you did. Maybe we should make you an agent."

Darcy nodded absently but her mind was elsewhere. Had there been other times he was hiding in the shadows, listening?

"The answer's no," he said.

"What?" Did he just read her mind?

"I don't make a habit of listening in on people." He grinned and glanced behind him, "Just Tony."

"He won't find out from me."

Clint leaned down, placed his lips dangerously close to her ear. "So about those googly eyes..." He straightened and smirked.

She swatted him on the arm, wondered if she was turning a charming shade of red or an ugly one. "No one mentioned you were an ass," she said, trying to retain a shred of dignity.

"Really?" He feigned surprise, "That's usually the first thing they say about me."

"What's the first thing they say about me?" Tony interrupted their conversation. Darcy was startled by his sudden presence.

"That you're a selfish bastard that doesn't know when to fuck off," Clint said evenly. He didn't seem surprised or even angry, but he didn't seem to be joking either. Darcy couldn't place it.

"You know," Stark continued, "Steve and I both agree you two make an adorable couple."

"I think we were shooting more for badass," Darcy interjected.

"Oh! It's official!" Tony said loudly in that annoying tone he used to get everyone in a room's attention. He started pointing wildly at Clint and Darcy. "These two are an adorable - though shooting for badass - couple."

Clint blinked at Tony blandly.

* * *

Clint Barton had been sitting perched above the common area in the Avenger's Tower for six hours. It wasn't an unusual practice for the agent, but he'd been taken completely by surprise when Darcy Lewis had walked in, trailing behind Jane.

He'd done a lot of thinking lately on the subject of Darcy and his informant. Something was off, his instincts knew it, but his mind couldn't place what. Couldn't unravel the clues and place them into a cohesive picture.

And that was the sole reason he had been keeping his distance from the girl. There was no doubt that he was... Interested in her, he just needed to know the game before he started playing. And his "little birdy" left him with an uneasy feeling.

Still, he hated toying with her that way, avoiding her. It was something he had struggled with. But now that she was standing right below him, looking like an outcast among their little party, he was seriously considering abandoning his nest. Maybe he could make her smile.

He never expected she would see him.

And he hadn't regretted coming down, not until Tony had opened his mouth.

Clint blinked at Tony blandly, but inside he was imagining the ways he could kill him with the contents of his left pocket. He'd meant what he'd said to the guy. The last thing Clint wanted was to be the center of the group's misdirected attention. Not to mention he had already made up his mind about staying away from Darcy for now.

He should've stayed in his perch.

By then, everyone in the room had turned, confused looks all around. Even Steve.

There was silence for the briefest of moments. Then Natasha - God, she was a lifesaver - walked in the room.

"Sorry I'm late," she said in a decidedly non-apologetic tone. She glanced at Clint, then Tony, before surveying the rest of the room.

Everyone seemed torn for a moment before Thor's booming voice rang out, "Natasha!" Clint didn't think the two of them were very well acquainted. Honestly, Natasha never seemed to like the guy that much.

But there he was, hugging her like she didn't threaten to seriously injure everyone else that got within a few meters of touching her.

She pried the god of thunder from her person and took a few steps back.

"The Avengers are reunited," Steve said, but his attention was still largely on Clint and Darcy.

He hadn't forgotten, and neither had anyone else.

* * *

_Hey guys, quick question. Do you have a preference for when the weekly updates happen? If so, let me know in your review. It can be as vague as "midweek" or as specific as "9pm on Saturdays." I'll try to please as many people as possible and if it matters not to you then just say so ;)_

_Great guesses on the informant, by the way. It'll be awhile before you find out for sure. _

_Cheers!_


	5. Chapter 5

**Party Tricks**

**5**

* * *

"Oh my God," Jane said for the third time.

Darcy sighed. She considered herself patient but Jane was pushing it.

"Oh my-"

"Don't say it," Darcy stopped her.

"It's just so... Cute!"

"It's not cute. It's not anything!"

Jane looked at her in that condescending way she did when she knew shit Darcy didn't. Like what an event horizon was. Which, P.S., isn't the few hours before a big event.

"It's cute," she insisted.

"Look, Tony was wrong, we're not together. So it's not cute."

"It's cute that you're denying it."

"I'm not-" she pinched the bridge of her nose and took a deep breath. How could she put this politely? "Jane, stop talking."

The astrophysicist giggled - she was insufferably girly when Thor was around. "I think it's great Darce. Clinton seems like a nice guy."

"Clint," she corrected, "And he is nice but we're not a couple. Not even close. We barely even speak."

"Mmhmm," Jane said. It was obvious she was beyond reason so Darcy threw her hands in the air and gave up.

"Okay, you're right. We are a couple, a damn sexy one, and we're gonna have smart little archer babies. Happy?"

Jane's mouth opened about mid sentence but it had nothing to do with what Darcy had said.

"Sounds fun, when can we get started?" A voice behind her said.

Darcy spun around and came face to face with none other than Clint. He had his yummy arms crossed over his chest and a smug smirk on his face.

There was really nothing redeemable to say right then so Darcy just gaped at him like a fool. God, she really knew how to embarrass herself. She should get an award.

"Changed your mind already?" Clint raised an eyebrow at her.

"You have horrible timing," she said, recovering her voice.

"I thought it was pretty good. Unless of course you were about to go into more detail, in which case, don't let me stop you."

"I hate you," she muttered, still feeling the sting of mortification. It certainly didn't help that Clint seemed to be enjoying himself.

"But what will our smart little archer babies think?"

"That their father's an ass who enjoys the pain of others," she deadpanned.

Clint grinned, "I'll tell em you love me anyway."

By then, Jane was practically squealing behind Darcy. "You two _are_ adorable."

"Great, now she thinks we're cute _and_ adorable," Darcy said. "Will you tell her we're not a couple?"

Clint grabbed at his chest in mock pain, "We're not? But what about our archer babies? We could get them tiny little bows and arrows."

She swatted at him, "Seriously. She'll tell Thor and then the whole freakin universe will know."

"I'm right here," Jane said.

Darcy ignored her.

"Miss Foster, Darcy is right, Stark made a mistake,"

"Shocker," Darcy added under her breath.

"We're not a couple," Clint finished.

Jane was unconvinced. "Well, I'll just leave you two alone then to _not_ be a couple," she winked not-so-subtly at Darcy on her way out.

Darcy groaned, "She's been like a gossipy schoolgirl ever since the Thoreunion."

"At least you don't have the Cap on your ass. Apparently anything Stark says vetoes the actual truth in his mind."

Darcy smiled, not because they were discussing the widespread denial of their couple status, but because she realized that she was talking to Clint, and she was enjoying herself. Truly enjoying herself. She felt happy and a little giddy and she kinda just wanted to kiss him and tell Thor they were a couple, damn it, spread the word.

"Now who's enjoying the pain of others?" Clint asked.

"I wasn't. I was just thinking surely you can handle spangly forties guy if I'm handling Thor."

"You're not handling Thor."

She nodded, "By association."

"That doesn't count."

"Petty, aren't we, Hawk?" She grinned.

"If you two are finished bantering, I need Agent Barton," Natasha interrupted. Darcy hadn't even noticed her.

Clint's face transformed immediately into a blank mask as he took a subtle step away from Darcy. He offered her nothing more than a small nod before leaving the room.

Natasha didn't even glance her way as she herded Clint out.

* * *

_Just to let you all know, the charger for my MacBook gave out so I have to post from my phone which pretty much hates ff . net. Any other site, it works great, except this one. No idea why. But it's a total pain and it takes forever. Anyway, I have a few future chapters loaded already but I just wanted to let you know that if I'm late or there's a hold up, that's why. I don't know when I'm going to be able to swallow spending $80 on a charger so we'll see! _

_Thanks for the reviews everyone, they mean a lot! They make trying to put a chapter up six times worth it! _

_Someone mentioned Tony.. He'll pop up again next chapter and I hope you'll approve of my take on him :)_

_Updates are midweek now!_

_Until next time..._

_Cheers!_


	6. Chapter 6

**Party Tricks**

**6**

* * *

"Son of a bitch!" Darcy exclaimed as she nudged her apartment door open. It had been ajar already, the wood busted and splintered around the lock. She had gotten that dreadful feeling inside, almost certain she had been robbed. What she hadn't been expecting was her entire home to be turned upside down.

It looked as if someone had let loose a pair of cyclones to have their fun. There wasn't a bare piece of floor left. Clothes and dishes and knickknacks were littered everywhere. Belatedly, she wondered if the offenders were still present, but it seemed as though they had already thoroughly trashed every inch of her -admittedly tiny- apartment.

She moved from one spot to the next, increasingly devastated by what she saw. Simply rifling through her things wasn't enough, they had destroyed anything they hadn't taken.

They had even smashed the pot Clint gave her.

She gathered the broken pieces with a small whine. Talk about irreplaceable. Even worse, she felt positively freaked out and more than a little violated.

Someone had been in her home, gone through her stuff. She needed someone...

She pulled her phone out with shaky hands, the more she thought about it the more upset she was. She scrolled through her contacts a few times. She could call Jane, but she was out with Thor and she hated to interrupt them.

She could call Clint but she didn't know where he was. Since he had left with Natasha a week ago, he'd been gone, presumably on a mission, and she hadn't heard from him.

The fact that she felt like she had no one to call made her even more upset. When she finally settled on calling Tony, who had given her his personal number a few days ago, she was near tears.

"Sexy genius speaking," he answered.

She did little more than sniff into the phone. Way to hold it together, Darce.

"Uhh," there was a pause as Tony pulled his phone back to see who had called him, "Darcy?"

Now that she was on the line with someone she felt stupid for even calling. "Nevermind," she mumbled, feeling like a child afraid of the dark.

"Hold it. What's the matter?"

"Someone broke into my apartment, I think." Well, she _knew._

"Seriously? Are you okay?" He sounded like the concerned older brother he had announced himself to be when he'd given her his number.

"Um, yeah, I just..." She wasn't sure what she just. She just needed company? She just didn't want to be there?

"Say no more. I'll have a car pick you up, you can stay in the tower."

She heard him issuing orders to Jarvis. "You don't have to-"

"Clint lives here," he said in a sing-songy voice, like he was trying to convince her to eat her vegetables.

She stifled a laugh at his pathetic attempt to persuade her. Though it did cheer her up.

"I knew it," he said.

* * *

Half an hour later, Darcy stood in the tower pulling a Hello Kitty rolling bag she had borrowed from a friend in fifth grade and never returned, and clutching a Tupperware container.

Stark greeted her with a raised eyebrow at her choice of luggage but she didn't give him time to remark.

"Fix it," she said, holding her Tupperware out to him. She looked about as pitiful as a child with a broken toy.

Out of curiosity, he took it and peeled the lid back. "I didn't glue broken vases back together as a kid, I made replicas with my 3-D printer, sorry."

"You can't fix it?" She asked.

"Well I'm always up for a challenge. Especially if you're gonna give me puppy dog eyes. But why the fuss over this crappy pot?" He pulled a piece out and examined it.

"It's not crappy," she reached to reclaim her item, but Tony kept it out of reach.

He studied her for a moment, "It's crappy," he stated flatly. "But apparently it's crappy with a side of sentimental value so I'll do what I can."

Darcy instantly lit up, "Thanks."

"Cap says he wants to look into the break-in at your place but he wants your permission first."

"Uhm sure, yeah, that's fine." Leave it to Captain A to be the big hero. All he'll find is a messy-ass apartment. But yeah, it was kinda cool that she had a team of superheroes looking out for her. Very cool.

"So you want a room next to your favourite archer, or will you be sharing?" Tony waggled his eyebrows at her in that pseudo-sexy way of his.

"Yeah, I think we'll just share," she said sarcastically.

"Perfect, I was running out of room anyway."

Yeah, like that would happen.

"So, uhm, where is Clint anyway?" Keep it casual, Darce. Smooth.

Tony laughed. The bastard. "Don't know kid, SHIELD's got him whipped. He's off God knows where doing God knows what." He stopped and gestured toward a seemingly random door. "He even takes _their_ missions over the Avenger's."

Say what?

"I mean we're all the same, kumbaya and that shit but why take a lame-ass mission when you could be kickin it high-profile with me?"

And back to the narcissism.

"So you're saying Clint doesn't actually work with the Avengers anymore?" Darcy was confused with a side of what-the-hell?

"The guy's easy to miss sometimes, but nope, he hasn't saddled up with us the last few times. He's shipped out with SHIELD instead."

Huh. Well, Darcy sure as hell didn't know that. She wondered how many people did.

She still had questions, but Tony had already walked inside her new room and switched topics.

"Enjoy. If you need anything, talk to Jarvis."

She seriously doubted that would happen because it was kinda weird, but whatever.

What she really wanted to do now was go and interrogate the Cap. What better pretense than helping him investigate her break-in? But it was late, so it would simply have to wait.

* * *

_Hey guys, glad you enjoyed the last chapter, it's one of my favs so far!_

_So Tony showed up a bit more, yay?_

_As always, your reviews make my day, so don't be shy, drop me a note and let me know what you think._

_Also, doc manager dumped my last minute edits out so if you see a mistake you can just point it out and I'll fix it when I get my trusty Mac back. _

_Until next time!_

_Cheers!_


	7. Chapter 7

**Party Tricks**

**7**

* * *

Clint returned to the Avenger's tower after a particularly frustrating assignment to find Darcy lounging in the common area.

It was late and he was exhausted so naturally he stopped short and stared in confusion for several moments before she noticed him. It was very possible he was delusional as he hadn't slept in several days.

"Clint?" She squinted into the dark. It was somewhere around three in the morning and everyone else was asleep.

He regained his wits and decided that if it _was_ a delusion, he would simply play along. "What are you doing here?" Rude? A little. But Clint was a direct kinda guy.

Darcy seemed unaffected by his pointedness. "My apartment was trashed by someone last week, so Tony's letting me stay here for a while."

He stepped closer until the dull light of the television washed over his face. Darcy could see the fatigue written in the lines on his face. But there was also concern.

"Are you alright?" He frowned.

"Yep. Peachy keen. The Cap checked it out but he didn't find anything weird. I guess they covered their tracks?"

If possible, Clint frowned deeper. He didn't like the sound of that. The average thief isn't that thorough, they're not thorough at all.

"Did they take anything?"

"Not much. Thankfully my iPod was with me," she grinned. "They did swipe my laptop but Tony hooked me up so it's all good. You know, he's actually not such a bad guy after all."

Yep, it was a delusion. It had to be. Even worse, he was in big trouble if his delusions were including Darcy now.

"Hmm, okay," he was a little distracted at the thought that he was losing it. And there was that nagging feeling again that something was very wrong.

"You look like you could sleep for a week," Darcy said, standing to get a better look at him. "Everything alright?"

"Yeah," he grunted. It was a bald-faced lie. SHIELD was riding his ass hard over shit that wasn't his fault, but he wasn't about to unload on Darcy. Not even delusion-Darcy.

She smirked at him mischievously. "You look like you could use a nice, long massage."

Oh yeah, definitely a delusion. And God that sounded amazing but he so was _not_ going there with her. Not right now. There were still things he needed to figure out.

Like if he was going insane.

"Just sleep," he said, almost entirely against his will. It was possible he was the stupidest guy on earth.

"Alright. Nite then, hawk."

Clint shuffled away, considering beating his head against the wall once he got to his room. Delusion or not, he was gonna regret that in the morning.

* * *

Darcy had uncovered surprisingly little during her time with Captain A. He was one of those, "On a need to know basis," kinda guys and he didn't consider her _need_ to know strong enough.

But after seeing Clint last night she'd decided to make it her business. So she'd set about bugging the living shit out of the Cap as soon as he'd woken up (which was 5am, by the way. Crazy bastard). She'd been at it for three hours before he finally admitted that maybe the Hawk was flying solo.

Well, not so much solo as solely for SHIELD.

Even the party where all of this began technically excluded him, since he wasn't a part of the team that had, "saved the world." No wonder he'd looked like he didn't want to be there.

"So... Clint isn't an Avenger anymore?" She asked slowly. She still felt like she was missing something.

Steve looked distressed at the interrogation. And by harmless Darcy, the pansy.

"Clint is part of our team."

Way to not answer the question. Maybe the Cap missed his calling as a politician.

"Right, he's just not included in the whole purpose _of_ the team," she raised an eyebrow at him.

"SHIELD needs his talents elsewhere. I respect their judgement."

Of course he does.

"So what you're saying is, I need to talk to the pirate guy for answers?"

Steve looked confused.

"The one with the eyepatch," she said helpfully.

"Director Fury. I wouldn't-"

But Darcy was already halfway out of the room by then. If she needed to take on a leather-clad pirate wanna-be to get answers, then so be it.

She probably needed to get to work anyway.

* * *

When she got to SHIELD headquarters, she popped in to see Jane first.

"Hey, eyepatch... Er, Director Fury wants to talk to me."

Jane gave her a look that fell somewhere between concerned and stern. She had taken to acting like Darcy's older sister, or even mother, which was ridiculous considering Darcy already _had_ a mother to avoid. She didn't need two.

"What did you do?"

Darcy grinned. "Nothing." Yet.

Jane hardly looked like she believed her but Darcy didn't let that stop her as she skipped off toward the pirate's office.

Only one problem, she had no idea where it was.

Like the freakin scary person that she was, Natasha appeared out of nowhere in front of a slightly lost Darcy.

"Looking for someone?" She effectively blocked the path, leaving Darcy to consider running the other way.

"Yeah, the big guy with the eyepatch."

"Funny," she said without a trace of humor, "Fury asked me to pass a message on to you."

Darcy jumped in at the assassin's pause, "Well he can tell me himself. I need to talk to him."

Natasha smiled ever so slightly as if the thought amused her. "He's very busy, but he asked me to give you the week off."

Say what? "The week?" Her enthusiasm was_ not_ contained. But skepticism quickly sat in, "Why?"

Natasha shrugged like she couldn't care less, which was probably true.

Darcy raised an eyebrow, "With pay?"

The red-head nodded and disappeared, apparently finished with the conversation.

Darcy was already planning her week off when she stopped short. Wait a second, she had been on a mission. Was she so easily distracted by silly things like vacations?

Well... Yes, but she wasn't out of the building yet. Spinning on her heel, Darcy resolved to talk to Fury and _not_ be distracted.

Conveniently, she spotted Margie... Mary... Marie... Whatever her name was, Fury's lackey, entering the building. Easy peasy, she thought, just follow the pirate's crony.

"Miss Lewis, is there something I can help you with?"

Okay, she really needed to learn how to tail someone. But she was more of a direct, taze em kinda girl.

And, damn it, why did she know Darcy's name. It seemed unfair. She was pretty sure the woman's started with an M.

"Nope, just headed the same way you are."

Fury's lackey looked unimpressed. "Your department is that way," she pointed to the left, "If I'm not mistaken."

She wasn't, but... Rude! "I need to talk to Fury," she crossed her arms over her chest and hoped that made her look more determined.

"Director Fury is very busy, Miss Lewis, but I'd be more than happy to pass a message along to him."

"Sure, you can tell him I'm right behind you."

Hah, take that!

Fury's lackey touched her ear momentarily. "Good news, Miss Lewis, I've just been informed that you've been given a week off."

"Super, great, yeah, I know. I'm still talking to Fury." Wow, this dude is seriously hard to get near.

"I suggest you take your vacation effective _immediately_."

Darcy narrowed her eyes. Was that a threat?

* * *

It turned out to be a very real threat, and that was how Darcy ended up being marched into the Avenger's tower by two SHIELD agents.

"You can leave now," she said, irritated and a little embarrassed that they were _still_ following her once she got to the residential floor. She may as well have been talking to a wall. Her escorts neither responded nor left.

So naturally, she was inordinately pleased when she spotted Clint. Okay, she was usually pleased when she saw Clint. Always, whatever.

"What's going on here?" He addressed the agents escorting her. Darcy hadn't expected the serious tone he'd taken.

One of them seemed to recognize him, "Agent Barton."

Clint blinked, waited for him to answer the question.

"We were instructed to escort Miss Lewis here."

He raised an eyebrow at Darcy, who rolled her eyes.

"I'll take it from here." He dismissed the agents, which apparently he had the clout to do.

Darcy totally did _not_ think that was sexy. Nope. Not even a little.

As soon as the agents disappeared, Clint's expression shifted into one of playful curiosity.

"What did you do?"

Darcy scoffed and looked at the floor, "Nothing." She couldn't exactly tell him what happened without revealing what she knew about him.

Clint opened his mouth to argue but Tony chose that moment to come into the room. "Why are there two SHIELD agents in my tower?" He asked no one in particular.

He caught sight of Clint and nodded his way, "No offense."

The archer stared at Stark as if his existing was a crime against humanity. Which, yeah, Darcy totally agreed most of the time. The guy certainly wasn't the most tactful person she knew.

If he hadn't, you know, saved the world or whatever she'd be right there alongside Clint, giving him the "Curse your mother for giving birth to you!" look.

As it was, she was pretty pleased to not be dead or enslaved by aliens, egomaniacal hotties or otherwise.

"What's that?" Darcy asked, eager to change the subject. She was referring to the rectangular box in Tony's arm.

"Oh, this is for you," he held the box out toward Darcy.

She took it, feeling a bit awkward. She chanced a quick glance at Clint who seemed to be continuing his trend of glaring through Tony.

Darcy opened it gingerly. Peeking inside the top, she let out a gasp.

"Oh my God!"

She pulled her fully restored pot out, casting the box thoughtlessly on the floor. "You fixed it!"

"Is that-" Clint started, but Darcy interrupted him.

"Whoever broke into my place busted it up. I asked Tony to fix it," she explained.

"More like told," Stark muttered.

"Is it the original?" She asked, squinting her eyes as she closely examined the pot. "No replicas?"

Tony puffed up, "Of course not. It took me almost two weeks to perfect a formula that seamlessly binds the-"

"Awesome, thanks Tony," she interrupted him. She didn't need details. It was fixed, he did sciency stuff. Nuff said.

Stark looked mildly offended at the interruption but recovered quickly. "Glad I could save the day. So what's the story with that crappy pot, anyway?"

"Clint gave it to me," she grinned at the archer. The hell with hiding it, she cared, the cat was out of the box. Bag, shoes, whatever.

Tony let out a groan, "I should've guessed."

"Yes, you should've. _Genius._"

"Right, well, I feel a make out session coming on so I'm outta here."

She wiggled her fingers at him in a mock wave as he left the room, muttering something about being run out of his own place.

Silence immediately engulfed them as if Tony had taken all of the sound out of the room with him.

* * *

Clint wasn't sure what to say. Had she really cared that much about some silly gift he'd given her on a whim?

"Is that really the pot I gave you?"

She nodded, and he detected a hint of embarrassment now, or discomfort.

It was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore this girl. She was so... She had been so genuinely excited about the restoration of that stupid pot. Did she really like it that much or was it him she liked?

He couldn't wrap his mind around it. He was a worthless asshole. Sure, he had aim, but he was an uneducated, half deaf, run down circus act. And Darcy was... Not.

Of all the things destroyed in her apartment, had she cared most about something _he_ had given her?

No, he needed to keep his head. He had already made a decision, a perfectly sound, reasonable decision, to keep his distance.

"You must think it's silly," she said. "I'm a silly fan girl."

"No," was all he said. Clint wasn't good at this stuff. He downright sucked at it. Touchy feely talk, reassurances, those weren't his thing. Action was his thing. But what action could he take to show Darcy that he was on the same page?

He could think of some, but they would all violate his self-imposed rule to stay the hell away from that shit.

So instead, he changed the subject. "So tell me again why you were escorted in here by two of SHIELD's finest?" He smirked at her, but it was fake this time.

"Oh, that," she waved her hand at him like it was a trivial thing. "I just wanted to talk to Fury."

Clint raised an eyebrow, "I'm guessing he didn't want to talk?"

"Yeah. Mary or whatever her name is threatened me and I didn't listen so she had me carted off. The bitch."

"Maria, yes, she's a delight."

Darcy finally made eye contact with him at that and smiled.

"It must've been important," he said.

"Hmm?"

"Whatever you wanted to talk to Fury about."

She nodded, seemed to hesitate. Her gaze dropped to the floor for a split second before she spoke, "He gave me the week off, I wanted to make sure it was _w__ith_ pay." She grinned, fairly convincingly, but years of dancing around lies in the world of assassins had left Clint with a keen eye. Hell, even Natasha lied to him most of the time. The difference was they both knew it.

But he wasn't going to push it. If she didn't want to tell him, she certainly didn't have to. He had no right to know either way.

Plus, there was more important information there. Darcy had been given the week off for seemingly no reason.

Clint had also been ordered to rest for the week.

Coincidence? Maybe.

"So, are you feeling better?" She asked, interrupting his thoughts.

He must've looked confused because Darcy continued.

"Last night you were kinda out of it."

Ah, so it hadn't been a delusion. Clint wasn't sure which way was worse. But if it had been real, then...

"Did you offer to give me a massage?" He said out loud.

Darcy laughed, "You _were_ out of it."

Clint resisted the urge to frown. That wasn't an answer.

"Yes, I'm feeling up to that massage now," he said, winking at her.

"I bet you are."

"What else could you possibly want to do with your time off?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe _get_ a massage."

This game they were playing was becoming dangerous. Clint needed to get out before he lost. God, he would love to lose.

"I'll leave you to it then," he said, seamlessly switching gears from flirting Clint to impersonal Agent Barton. "I need to get some practice in."

He realized that he looked like the biggest, dumbest ass ever.

"Ooh," Darcy's interest seemed piqued. He definitely should've seen that coming. "With your bow?" she asked.

He nodded, edging his way out of the room in what he hoped was a subtle way.

"Can I watch?" She asked. And, damn it, did she sound genuinely interested.

Clint hesitated. Sure, it was a stroke to his ego, but there were painful memories lurking there too. Images of his past, of being nothing more than a show, an attraction. But this was one girl, it was Darcy. How could he say no?

"Sure," he answered.

Darcy practically bounced after him and he realized that he was failing at keeping his distance. Epically.

* * *

_Hey guys, sorry this is a day late. I kinda almost forgot yesterday and then my phone wouldn't agree with the site. But it's a super long chapter so hopefully that makes up for it! _

_On amother note, if there are any fellow archers out there, I got to meet Brady Ellison and Jake Kaminski last weekend and watch them shoot up close at the Field Nationals. It was awesome! They flew out that same day to Turkey for the World Cup. But they're really nice and awesome shooters so it was great. They were, of course, decked out in the latest Hoyt gear and Brady didn't have his pink bow but it was awesome and Jake won the men's recurve. If you have no idea what I'm talking about I recommend google ;) _

_Cheers!_


	8. Chapter 8

**Party Tricks**

**8**

* * *

"This is the riser," Clint said, positioning her hand on the grip. "These are the limbs," he ran a hand along the top and bottom parts of the bow.

Darcy was standing with Clint nestled against her, his hands over hers, showing her how to hold his bow. She might've asked again just... Cause. And yeah, she loved her life.

He helped her nock an arrow, draw, and release. With his assistance, she, of course, hit the target.

"Bullseye," she said, smiling up at him.

"Alright, Miss Bullseye," he stepped away and she mourned the loss of his proximity. Did she mention he smelled good? And his yummy arms... Ugh, come back, Clint!

"Go on, shoot it," he was smirking openly at her. And yes, he was really gorgeous when he smiled.

"I have no idea what I'm doing," she pouted.

He stepped closer again (Yay!), "Hold here," he fixed her hand. "Point your bow down to nock your arrow," he helped her (read: did it for her). Still standing a breath from her, he instructed, "Now raise it and draw back. Keep your elbow high and bring your index finger to the side of your jaw." He helped her through the motions before stepping back.

Darcy grinned nervously at him before giving it a go herself. She got to the part where she was supposed to draw and let out a grunt.

"Holy shit, it won't budge. We're you doing _all_ the work?"

Clint laughed, "The draw weight is way too much for you. I just wanted to see you try."

"I hate you." And now she knew where those yummy arms came from. Mmm.

"I get that a lot from you. I'm starting to think you mean it," he clutched at his chest before taking his bow from a glaring Darcy.

"So if I wanna learn I need a different bow?" She asked, changing the subject. She really liked the idea of learning to shoot. It seemed more empowering than tazing someone. And, ya know, she'd have a _very_ good teacher.

Clint gave her that puzzled look, like he was trying to read her mind. "You really want to learn?"

"Well... Yeah. I mean, I've always thought it'd be neat, ever since I won at Wii archery." Did that sound stupid? She thought so.

Clint let a grin loose across his face, "Wii archery?"

"Yeah it's a video game, have you played it? There are moving targets and stuff. I mean I guess that'd be easy for you." Stop now, Darcy. Just. Close. Your. Mouth.

"No, I haven't. Does Tony have it?"

Darcy realized he was genuinely intrigued and stifled a laugh. How had Stark not already exploited this? I mean, Hawkeye playing Wii archery. This was gold.

She shrugged, "Probably. He has everything."

Clint nodded slowly like he was considering the thought.

For once she decided to be nice and help him out, "You wanna play?"

"Sure," he said, a little too quickly. He fiddled with the bow in his hand, "Yeah, if you want," he amended, "Surely you can pull a virtual bow."

"Har, har," she resisted the urge to punch him in the -muscular- arm.

He grinned at her before heading down range to pull his arrows.

"But you have to get me a bow," she called after him, "Do you think Tony can make one?"

He let out a derisive laugh, "Tony's not a bowyer."

"Tell_ him_ that," she said, "And what the hell is a bowyer?"

"A person who makes bows," he raised his eyebrows like it should be obvious. "It takes years to perfect."

* * *

"Yep, it only took me a couple of hours," Tony was unmistakably smug as he handed the bow to Clint.

The archer inspected it, drew it back and let down. Beside him, Darcy looked thrilled.

"You didn't make this," Clint said flatly.

"Excuse me?"

Clint took his fingernail to one of the limbs and scratched a bit of paint off. "It says 'SKY'."

Tony shrugged, "So I bought it. Why would I want to make something someone's already made?"

"How did you know that?" Darcy directed her question at Clint.

"I know my bows," he smirked.

"You're welcome," Tony said, irritated that no one was talking to or about him. And maybe a little ticked he was found out so easily. He knew he should've gone for the second coat of paint.

"Oh," Darcy said, "Thanks Tony. You're awesome."

"I know."

Darcy took her bow from Clint and inspected it. Her own bow, awesome, and was that...

"Is that Hello Kitty?" She gaped at Tony.

"To match your luggage," he said innocently.

"I hate you. Repaint it."

"No can do, Darce. I have very important things to do." He waved and then let himself be chased from the room by Darcy's death glare.

She was hoping he would combust at any minute but her concentration was broken by Clint.

"You have Hello Kitty luggage?"

She tore her gaze from Tony's disappearing back. "It's not mine."

Clint raised his eyebrow like that was the most blatant lie he'd ever heard.

"It's Wanda's," she defended.

"Uh huh. Who's Wanda."

"A girl I knew in fifth grade," she muttered.

He looked like he was about to laugh but at her glower, changed his mind.

"Can we shoot now?" She asked, changing the subject.

"You sure Kitty's not gonna be a problem?"

"Shut up," she grumbled.

* * *

_Funny story, Wii Archery is actually what got me into archery. _

_This is mostly a fun chapter with some Clint/Darcy interaction ... Yay!_

_Keep the reviews coming, they make my day :)_


	9. Chapter 9

**Party Tricks**

**9**

* * *

It turned out that the world's best archer was the world's worst video game player.

Darcy threw her hands up as Clint completely missed the target for the seventh time. "Seriously, have you ever played a video game?"

Clint looked equal parts flustered and perplexed that he was failing at something archery themed. "The game behaves nothing like a real bow."

Darcy snorted, "Hadn't pegged you for a sore loser. Should I turn the wind down, or should we just move the target to five meters?"

Clint looked at her with the barest hint of a smile tugging on his lips, "Why don't you show me how /you do it?"

"Are you saying you need lessons? The great hawk?"

He shrugged and Darcy smirked. Oh. _Oh_. She gets it.

She eased up behind him and slid her hands over his shoulders and down his arms. Pressing her body up against his, she placed her hands over his on the controllers.

"I think you're trying too hard," she whispered in his ear. "Just relax. Pull back and... Just let it happen."

Clint's body felt nowhere near relaxed next to hers. He felt like a coiled spring, like every sense the archer had was on high alert. But when he shot, his virtual arrow hit its virtual target dead on.

Yep, she was an awesome teacher.

"Whoa, am I interrupting something?"

Clint sprang away from her faster than she'd ever seen him move.

Still rooted in the same place, Darcy turned to see Tony with a piece of licorice in his mouth. "We're just playing Wii archery," she said casually.

Tony looked torn between laughing and commenting. He decided on both. "Hmm I've never played quite like that. Can I join?"

Clint glared at Stark with a palpable intensity.

"Are you losing epically against the mighty Hawk?"

"Actually," Darcy began, glancing at Clint, "Yes." What the hell, she'd lie for him when it came to Tony.

"I'm surprised he doesn't suck. Have you even played video games before?" Tony asked.

"No, I'm just naturally talented," Clint replied.

Darcy discreetly moved over and elbowed the archer in the ribs. To her irritation he didn't even flinch.

Then her ears caught up with her brain, "What? You've never played video games?"

"No, when would I have played video games?"

Darcy shrugged, "When you were a kid? Surely you weren't always a super secret agent." The article about the carnival Hawkeye popped into her brain but she dismissed it.

"He was," Tony chimed, "Popped out of his mother that way, with shades and a back quiver full of arrows. Ouch."

Neither Darcy nor Clint paid him any attention. "Nope, just never had the chance," Clint said. His tone was final, derailing further discussion. It served only to make Darcy more curious, though.

I mean, as much as she thought Clint was freakin awesome, she didn't know much about him. To be honest the thought of bringing up his past was a little intimidating. It was no secret he was as guarded as Buckingham Palace. Plus, he was a SHIELD agent so there was that.

She shrugged it off for now, she wasn't about to push it, especially not with Tony in the room.

* * *

_This is just a little weekend bonus chapter in case you were wondering how Clint fared at Wii Archery ;) _

_Until Wednesday!_

_ Cheers!_


	10. Chapter 10

**Party Tricks**

**10**

* * *

It was Darcy's last day off and she was determined to enjoy the hell out of it. If she could only find Clint she'd be well on her way.

So far she'd looked in the common area, his room, the roof, and...

Duh. She wanted to slap herself for being so stupid. Of course! He's gotta be at the range.

She dashed for the nearest elevator and let it carry her down to the floor that held impressive shooting ranges for both bows and firearms. Belatedly, she thought of bringing her own new bow. She was coming along nicely for having only shot it twice. So far she was... What was the word Clint had used? ... "Grouping" arrows near the yellowish circle in the middle of the target. Not _on_ it, but near. Whatever, she was spending time with Clint.

Maybe she'd go back up and get it if Clint turned out to be down here.

Sure enough, he was all alone, pounding arrows into a target that was impressively far down range. Darcy smiled to herself as she quietly closed the door behind her.

She waited until he was finished before speaking. "Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you. I probably should've looked here first."

Clint set his bow on its stand and wiped his face with a towel, his back still to her.

She frowned. "Clint?"

Clint threw the towel over his shoulder and headed down range to retrieve his arrows.

Weird. Clint never ignores her. She waited until he turned around, arrows in hand, and spotted her.

He looked pleased at first, but his expression quickly morphed into something less appealing. Like he didn't want her there.

She let out a little wave of her hand and waited for him to get closer.

"I was talking to you," she said, "I thought maybe you were ignoring me?" Voicing it sounded stupid now and she cringed as the last word left her mouth.

Clint was staring intently as she spoke.

"Sorry," he said, putting his arrows in their quiver and taking it off.

"Were you in the zone?" She forced a laugh.

Clint grimaced. He looked unsure of himself. It was strange.

"I can leave if you want," she offered, feeling awkward and wondering if she was violating some sort of Hawk-time thing.

He shook his head, "I just..." He paused and swallowed, seeming hesitant. "I didn't put my hearing aids on this morning before I came down."

Hearing aids? What was he talking about? Oh, was he joking?

She smiled, made a little laughing sound. "Funny."

Clint ran a hand through his hair and met her gaze, "I couldn't hear you."

Oh. Was he serious? He looked serious.

"You... couldn't? Can't?" Is that why he was staring at her so hard? Was he reading her lips?

"Let me go and get them," he said quickly and disappeared, leaving a slightly shocked and confused Darcy behind.

* * *

Stupid. That's what he was. A damn fool.

He knew better than to put himself in that position. What else could he do but tell Darcy the truth? And now she knew that he was practically deaf.

He cursed himself all the way to his room. Was it so difficult to stick these little things in his ears that he had foregone them this morning? He knew Darcy would be lurking around. He had only wanted to shoot in blissful silence and what had that gotten him?

Irritated at himself, he punched the elevator button. What must she think of him now? As if it wasn't bad enough. Fuck, why does he care anyway? He's supposed to be staying away from her.

He took a deep breath before entering the range. He found Darcy playing with his hip quiver. She had it on and was flipping arrows in and out of it.

She spun around, looking somewhat embarrassed when he walked in. But damn it, was she adorable. It was like she was out to get him. Seriously. She had to be doing this shit on purpose.

"I kinda dig your other arrow holder thingy," she said, as if they were having a perfectly normal conversation about quivers. "The one that goes on your back. It's sexy."

Clint was somewhat astonished at her not calling him out straight away. Or yelling at him. Hell, he was surprised she was still there. And calling him sexy. "I like that one on you," he smirked.

"How come I don't have one of these? I'm practically a professional archer now."

"Take that one," he stepped closer. Was she really this understanding? Could they really go on like nothing had happened? Like he hadn't revealed something about himself that few people knew?

Her face lit up, "Really?"

"Yeah, unless you'd prefer a pink one to match your bow."

She whacked him with the arrow in her hand.

"Careful, that's a weapon. You wouldn't want to hurt me."

"Maybe I was trying to."

She smiled at him and then leaned to the left a little, then the right. He realized she was looking in his ears.

"Thank you," she said finally.

"No problem, I have some old ones I can-"

"No, for telling me something about yourself."

He swallowed and his eyes dropped to her lips. God, he wanted to kiss her right now and he should _not_ be thinking that. But she had his quiver on, and it was sexy.

Focus Clint...

"You're not... I mean, you're..." Way to be articulate, buddy. "Okay with it?"

"Well yeah," she closed the space between them and wrapped her arms around his neck and holy shit was he up a creek without a paddle now. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Clint wasn't sure he could form actual words now. This was serious. He was seriously attracted to this girl and if he lost it and kissed her there would be no going back.

It wasn't like seducing someone for a job. This was... Serious.

Darcy leaned in and Clint felt his body tighten. What the hell, he was going to kiss her. Fuck caution and intuition and...

And then she pecked him gently on the cheek. "I can tell its kind of a big deal for you and I won't tell anyone. But, thank you for trusting me."

Yep, she did this shit on purpose. She was doing a damn good job of making him fall for her. He definitely should've stayed away from her.

"I never even noticed," she said, peering into one of his ears again. He tried not to feel awkward about that fact. But Darcy was strange sometimes. It did quell his desire to do something he would surely regret, though.

"You're not supposed to," he said.

He thought this was the point where she would ask who else knew and what had happened, was he always this deaf, and a stream of other questions.

But she stepped back and said, "Are you finished practicing, cause I kinda wanna try shooting with my new arrow holder thingy?"

"Quiver."

"Yep. I think I have this arrow flipping thing down." She pulled an arrow out, flipped it around her fingers and whacked him in the chest with it.

He smiled at her craziness. She really knew how to make him feel at ease. He could get used to that.

"Sure, go grab Kitty."

"I wish you'd stop trying to name my bow. It hates being pink, I'll have you to know."

"I can't name it, but it hates being pink?"

"Yep," she flashed him a grin before jogging out the door.

Yeah, he definitely shouldn't get used to this.

* * *

_Hey guys, I'm glad you all enjoyed the bonus chapter this weekend. _

_Something super fun happens next chapter, so look forward to that ;)_

_Until then..._

_Cheers!_


	11. Chapter 11

**Party Tricks**

**11**

* * *

It was the perfect ending to the perfect day. Darcy, Jane, Pepper, and the Avengers (Hawkeye included) were gathered in the tower.

Bruce was in the kitchen helping Steve not burn the tower down, Tony was telling the rest of them why he had an aversion to being handed things, Jane was shamelessly snuggled up to a very pleased looking Thor, and Natasha kept glancing at Darcy with an unreadable expression.

She was presently seated next to Clint, who had his arm thrown subtly over the back of the couch behind her. He seemed interested in Tony's story, but Darcy knew better. He couldn't stand Tony's narcissistic drivel.

She wondered what he was thinking about, really.

Even more so, she wondered what Natasha was thinking. She was starting to creep her out. That woman was scary.

She turned her head toward Clint and angled it downward, "Natasha's scaring me," she whispered.

Clint looked like he was fighting a smile back as he kept his gaze on Tony. Then he shifted it to Natasha who was glancing back to see how the men in the kitchen were doing.

"She's not doing anything," he whispered back, still not looking at Darcy.

"She keeps looking at me."

"It sounds like you keep looking at her."

"She started it," Darcy huffed.

A smile fought its way on to Clint's face and Darcy thought it was impossibly cute. If superheroes could be cute, that is. From where she was sitting, they could.

"What do you want me to-"

Jane let out a coo from across the room and Darcy realized quite belatedly that the attention in the room had shifted to them. Geez, you'd think Clint would've noticed and headed that off at the pass. She must be doing a good job of distracting him. Go her.

"What are you looking at?" Darcy asked bluntly.

"Darcy, don't be rude," Jane scolded.

Darcy was about to get into it with her but Captain A walked in the room with a serious expression on his face.

"Fury's called us in," he announced, "It sounds important."

Every one of the Avengers jumped up except Clint, who merely leaned forward in his seat.

"Coming Hawk?" Tony asked.

Clint looked hesitant, but stood. If Darcy had been more out of the loop she would've been confused. As it was, she was anxious to see if he would join the team.

"Come on Barton, get it in gear," Cap ordered.

That was all he needed. He was already headed for the door. Darcy glanced at Pepper, who was whispering something in Stark's ear. And Jane, who was fussing over Thor, telling him to be careful. Darcy rolled her eyes, he was a freakin god with a magical hammer.

She glanced at Clint. He was just a regular guy with a non-magical bow. She hesitated...

"Wait," she called to him.

He spun around, along with everyone else. Darcy inwardly cringed. For a split second she almost said "never mind," but she didn't want to regret it.

She was tempted to tell everyone else to fuck off but she just ignored them and moved in on Clint.

"Be careful," she said quietly. She felt pretty damn foolish, but whatever.

"They _are_ quite, _adorable_, as you say," boomed Thor's voice, presumably in response to something Jane had whispered.

"I know I'm probably embarrassing the hell out of you," she said, "but oh well, you deserve it." She grinned and then while Clint was still somewhat off guard, she leaned up and planted a kiss on him.

That's it Darcy, take charge!

He looked more surprised than embarrassed. In fact, he was staring so intently at her that she wondered if he realized there was anyone else in the room.

"Take your time," Tony muttered sarcastically.

"Don't you have a suit to put on?" Darcy snapped.

At that, Tony and Captain America shuffled out of the room to get suited up, Pepper trailing behind. Bruce left out of politeness, Natasha sauntered out throwing a glance back at Darcy, and Jane herded Thor out.

"Did I surprise you?" Darcy asked, twisting her mouth sideways. She felt a bit uncomfortable. Had she gone too far? Was he not on the same page as she was? She thought he was.

"I'm learning that you're full of surprises, Darcy," he said, in a very low tone.

Holy cracker on a stick did she like when he said her name. And yeah, that sounded like something Jane would say but she didn't care.

"Was that supposed to be a good luck kiss?" He asked.

"Uhm, I guess."

Clint hummed as if mulling that over.

"What's 'hmm?'"

"Well I've never actually had a good luck kiss but that seemed kinda weak."

"So you don't feel lucky?" Darcy knew he was inviting her to kiss him again but she couldn't resist.

"Oh, I feel pretty damn lucky," he smirked and that was all the encouragement she needed.

Unlike the first time, this kiss was mutual. It felt controlled, like Clint was holding back but Darcy didn't give a rat's ass because she was kissing Hawkeye. No, she was kissing Clint. And he was kissing her.

She melted into him for the briefest of moments, just about to start losing herself, when Clint started pulling away.

He swallowed and ran a hand through his hair. His eyes darted toward her lips again but he dragged them back up. "I'll be back," he said before giving her a quick wink and striding out the door.

* * *

Clint didn't know whether to do a happy dance or kick himself in the ass right now, but he had a job to do, so the decision would have to wait.

He could've done without Tony's suggestive glances on the way to meet with Fury, however. He did his best to ignore the guy and Natasha helped by conversing with him, but it was obvious that Stark was bursting with the need to say something.

The guy obviously had zero compartmentalizing skills.

Clint was actually relieved when they arrived in front of Fury. He sat down as far from Tony as he could get at the conference table and waited.

Fury sent a nod his way, "Good to have you with us today, Barton."

Clint nodded back, but he knew it was a lie. The only reason he was there was because it was the last day of his week of ordered "rest," and he hadn't been shipped off elsewhere yet. That and whatever had called them here was pretty unexpected.

"Here's the situation," Fury began, "We have some clown on our hands who calls himself the Grandmaster..."

* * *

Darcy hadn't been alone twenty seconds before Jane descended on her with what was possibly the creepiest smile she had ever seen.

"You kissed Hawkeye," she said.

Darcy didn't say anything but Jane needed no encouragement. "I knew it," she continued. "I knew you had it bad for him."

Darcy tried not to smile but she was seriously tempted to go all schoolgirl on Jane.

"So," Jane prodded, "What happened after everyone left?"

"I don't kiss and tell," Darcy said smugly.

"You kissed him again?" Jane squealed. "I'm so happy for you. Seriously, you two are adorable."

For once, Darcy didn't mind so much if Jane thought they were adorable.

"You both had me worried you were gonna go on like binary stars forever."

Okay, now she had no idea what the hell Jane was talking about. Her look must've said so because Jane switched back into girl mode and out of astrophysicist mode. Sometimes Darcy wondered which one was more annoying.

"So, how was it?"

Darcy could do little more than grin and nod. She just hoped Clint hadn't changed his tune by the time he came back.

* * *

_So... Finally a little action. Hopefully it was as epic as you expected it to be. Do remember to drop me a note and let me know. _

_More awesomeness to come next chapter, I promise. _

_Until next time..._

_Cheers!_


	12. Chapter 12

**Party Tricks**

**12**

* * *

With their teamwork firmly entrenched, the Avengers made quick work of the Grandmaster. So quick was their work, that Tony felt the need to get on camera and gloat. Surprise.

Jane, Darcy, and Pepper were glued to the television, watching the action unfold.

Tony had pretty much commandeered the camera. "...To any other hotshots that think they wanna tango with this city. The Avengers are here and we will kick your ass all the way to the west coast, baby!" He was clearly pumped.

Belatedly, he turned to the reporter, "Can I say "ass" on television?"

Her response was unintelligible but Tony didn't seem terribly concerned. Then he grinned widely and reached out of the frame for a second. He returned with Hawkeye, whom he had gripped around the shoulders with his suit of steel.

Darcy shifted forward slightly.

"And here's some sad news for the ladies. This lucky bastard is now taken by the lovely Darcy Lewis. You go Darce! Sorry gals."

Clint was unmistakably pissed as he tried to extricate himself from Stark.

By then, Darcy had put her head in her hands. She heard Tony's voice again, "Can I say "bastard" on television?"

When she looked back up, Clint had disappeared from in front of the camera.

Pepper glanced at Darcy with a somewhat shameful look. "I'm so sorry, Darcy. Tony crosses the line sometimes."

Yeah, like that wasn't a huge understatement.

"It's not your fault," Darcy said, "Tony's an idiot."

"Darcy!" Jane scolded.

She rolled her eyes. "Sometimes," she amended. "Sometimes he's kinda normal." At Jane's stern look, she continued, "...I mean... Sweet."

Pepper smiled softly, "I can't argue with any of that."

Jane frowned, "Is it just me, or did Clint seem kind of mad?"

Yeah, it was understatement evening.

Darcy scoffed, "He was freakin pissed, you mean. I don't think Clint likes the spotlight very much." She wondered if he ever did.

Damn it, now she was doing the understating.

She kinda wondered if he was plotting Stark's death right about now. She wished they would hurry back. I mean, Tony had bought her a new laptop. She needed him alive in case this one got stolen again, or crashed, or became obsolete in a few days.

Plus she was, ya know, kinda living in his tower, so there was that. Though she was pretty sure he'd leave it to Pepper and she really didn't see that chick kicking her out. She was way too nice. She was almost like a female Captain A.

Ew, wait, no. She'd look pretty damn bad in a spangly outfit. She just couldn't pull it off.

And now Pepper was probably wondering why Darcy was staring at her like that.

She didn't actually know anyone except her mother that could follow her erratic train of thought. Hoping to avoid a really awkward explanation, Darcy spoke up. "I hope they get back soon."

"Me too," Jane said. She looked pretty anxious to see her big hunk of Thor. That wasn't exactly where Darcy's mind was at, though she was interested to see how Clint acted.

Pepper just nodded her agreement. And Darcy wondered if they'd have another lame "Go Avengers," party. She had such fond memories of the last one...

* * *

It was a couple of hours later when the team finally arrived back at the tower. Something about debriefing.

Darcy stood when Tony came into the room. Pepper informed him that he was in big trouble, but he just kissed her.

Thor came striding in next and Jane made a beeline for him. Darcy turned away, looking for Clint.

But all she saw was the Cap. He looked tired and a little stressed.

"Where's Clint?" She asked, doing a very poor job of hiding her anxiety.

The Cap let out a sigh. "He ran off earlier."

"Ran off?"

"He disappeared. I don't know."

Darcy frowned. So he was pissed. She figured as much, but did he have to disappear?

She hated to ask, but she needed to find him. "Where's Natasha?"

"She said she was going to her room."

Darcy was gone before he'd even finished his sentence. She had no idea where Natasha's room _was_ but she was determined to find it.

And holy shit did that turn out to be a mistake. She had somehow not realized that Stark had so many rooms in this crazy tower.

She wandered the halls for awhile until at last she was getting quite weary and decided to take a break. She leaned against the wall and sucked in a breath. Then she paused, hearing a voice.

"Yes sir. He did our job for us."

There was silence for a minute and Darcy guessed that they were talking on the phone. It sounded like Natasha.

"Yes sir. We're very close to baiting the trap."

Darcy felt her heart beating in her chest. She was hearing a private conversation. Well, half of it. Half of an assassin's private conversation. Shoes on a stick, she should get very far away before Natasha discovers her.

The only problem was that her feet felt glued to the floor. What if Natasha heard her leaving?

"Understood." She heard what sounded like the end of the conversation and she decided to take her chances. She ran as lightly as possible on her toes down the hall until she rounded a corner. She took a deep breath and leaned against the wall.

What was Natasha talking about? She couldn't help but wonder. Who did what job? Bait what trap?

Darcy shook her head. She shouldn't even be thinking about it. It didn't matter. She just wanted to find Clint.

She was about to move and do just that when Natasha rounded the corner. She took one look at Darcy and her red lips curved into a smile.

"Check the roof or the range," she said, like Darcy had asked a question.

Darcy was far too busy panicking with visions of Natasha stabbing her with stilettos and funky fake spy girl lipstick. Understandably, her brain was slow to catch up.

"For Clint?" She asked stupidly.

Natasha just nodded and continued on her way.

Oh. Well she supposed Natasha could be helpful when she wanted to. And duh, she should've thought to check the range, at least.

She headed for the nearest elevator and punched the button with a bit too much force. Damn Tony. And Clint too. Stupid men.

When she arrived on the range floor it was eerily quiet. Not that it was typically a hub of activity or anything. She peered into the window on the door to the range and found it dark and quiet. Just in case, she opened it and stepped inside.

"Clint? Are you in here?"

No answer.

She flipped the lights on to be sure and waited as they hummed and flickered on in rows down the length of the range. She saw nothing but targets.

Turning the lights off, she headed for the elevator. She hoped Clint was on the roof.

It was dark up there, nearly two in the morning now and the wind blew her hair around her face as she stepped through the doorway. She hugged her hands around herself as she looked left and then right.

"Clint? Are you up here?"

Nothing.

She sighed and stared out across the city. Lights winked back at her from several buildings and she rubbed her hands over her arms, feeling a chill creep over her.

"Clint, where are you?" she said quietly.

* * *

Clint crouched in the darkness. He was completely hidden from sight, shadowed by the large air shafts of the roof. He could barely stand to stay quiet, to ignore Darcy's pleas for him. He was seething and frustrated. He wanted to kick himself swiftly from behind. He was a flurry of emotions and he couldn't bare for Darcy to see him this way.

He was barely, just barely, keeping himself from putting an arrow through Tony's eye.

He would like to blame everything on Stark - no, he would love to - but the fact was, it was his own fault. He knew better, he'd known from the start. He told himself to stay away and then he'd invited her to kiss him. Like a damn fool. And look what it had gotten him.

A kiss, yes, but it also screwed everything up and now Darcy was plopped on the roof with her legs crossed thinking God knows what.

"I knew it," she muttered to herself. Clint eased forward, listened intently. "I knew you'd regret kissing me."

Now Clint _and_ God knew what Darcy was thinking. He couldn't let that go on. She couldn't think that, he wouldn't let her.

"I don't," he said, his voice sounding almost awkward as it cut through the silence. He didn't move from his spot but Darcy jumped at his voice and got to her feet.

"Clint?"

"Why would you think that?" He asked.

She peered into the darkness in his general direction but he didn't think she saw him. "You ran off. I know you're mad at Tony but you didn't even..." she trailed off and he imagined her feeling stupid at this point, a petulant child. She wasn't. And yeah, it was scary how he knew that.

"I didn't even come see you," he finished for her. He was a fool anyway you cut it. An absolute ass.

But hiding was something he was good at, so he did it. The shadows, the silence, that was where he was comfortable, where he could think. This time it hadn't accomplished much though. He still wanted to kill Stark and he still thought himself an idiot. To top it off he'd made Darcy feel like it was her fault, which couldn't be farther from the truth.

He swallowed and stepped out of the shadows. The yellowish glow of the city cast his shadow across Darcy's until they mingled and melded into one. "I'm sorry," he said simply. He hoped it was good enough. What was done was done. He had already started letting this girl, this woman, in and there was no stopping it now. He only hoped he could salvage the ground they had covered so far. At the very least he hoped she would forgive him.

She smiled a little and stepped toward him, their shadows parted. "I can't believe you didn't kill Tony. You looked murderous on the news." It wasn't forgiveness. Or maybe it was?

He smirked, but it was forced. "I didn't want to disappoint you. I know you have a soft spot for him."

"I wouldn't be so sure. He painted Hello Kitty on my bow," she reminded him.

He took a deep breath and let the anger wash out of him. It was replaced by Darcy, her presence, her ease. And was she stepping closer again?

He ran a nervous hand through his hair. "How'd you find me, anyway?" he asked. It was a stupid question but his mind was running away with other thoughts, possibilities. It was far too occupied to make meaningful conversation.

"Natasha," was Darcy's response. She was so close now. A breeze drifted across the rooftop and her hair tickled his face. "It seems she's the only one that knows anything about the real Clint Barton." She was attempting nonchalance but Clint detected a hint of hurt. Maybe he was imagining it.

He was imagining so many things right now.

"Darcy," he said. His voice came out rough and coarse to his own ears. He had no idea what to say. He hoped she could understand.

Her gaze was so intense now, her eyes reflecting the moonlight back to him. She shivered and Clint had to stop himself from doing the same.

He brought a hand to her cheek, cupped it. She was mesmerising in the night. He could almost lose himself.

If possible, she leaned closer and he could smell granola bars and fragrant shampoo.

"I want to know you better than Natasha does," she whispered. The wind tried to carry her words away but they sounded loud and sharp in Clint's ears. She wanted to know him, she _still_ wanted to know him. His pulse quickened and he wondered, not for the first time, how she knew just the right things to say. Things that made him want to abandon all sense, forget everything, until it was just her. Ironically, it seemed that maybe she knew him better than she realized.

Before he knew it he was curling his other hand into her hair and tilting her face up to his. His lips had just met hers when the roof door slammed open.

Darcy actually let out a frustrated groan and Clint thought it was pretty adorable. He also shared her sentiment.

They turned to see the Cap come through the door, still in his spangly outfit. He had the sense to look a bit sheepish.

"Did I interrupt something?" he asked.

Darcy rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. "Yes, you did. Leave."

The Cap took a step backward but paused. "Barton, when you're finished, I need a word."

Clint nodded sharply and watched until Steve had left.

"I think you're in trouble," Darcy said with a grin.

Clint shrugged like he couldn't care less. "Now, where was I?"

"I think you were about to tell me why you were pouting like a five year old on the roof."

He hummed. "No, that wasn't it."

"Well I'm sure you weren't about to kiss me since five year olds don't usually have romantic feelings like that."

Clint smirked but slid his arms around her waist. "I wasn't pouting," he said lowly.

"Oh really? What do you call it then?"

He kissed her forehead. "Preventing murder." Then her cheek.

"You wouldn't murder Tony," she said.

He kissed her other cheek and damn it he hoped she shut up soon because he was about to lose it.

He pulled back and tried to look at her seriously. "I might. He put you in danger by announcing that on TV."

"Danger?"

He nodded, but he couldn't wait any longer. Now that he'd decided to let himself have feelings for Darcy, it felt like the most urgent thing in the world. He pressed his lips to hers in a desperate, needy kiss that she reciprocated without hesitation.

How long had it been since he'd kissed a woman like this? A woman he was serious about. The feeling almost scared him and he reined his emotions in a little, pulled away.

Darcy smiled softly up at him. He loved the way she was looking at him right now. There was no expectation, no disappointment. She wasn't in awe or fear of him. He didn't need to be Hawkeye or Agent Barton. She was happy with Clint. Just Clint. And that was something he had never felt before.

* * *

_Sorry I didn't get this out yesterday, I tried but the site was being rather opinionated. _

_Anyway, fun times! Review, I need inspiration to finish the next chapter before next Wednesday cause I've caught up with myself now. Gasp! _

_Until next time..._

_Cheers!_


	13. Chapter 13

**Party Tricks**

**13**

* * *

A solid week had passed since Darcy and Clint had openly admitted how they felt about one another. A solid agonizing week in which Clint was away and Darcy was driving herself nuts. She questioned the sanity of falling for a SHIELD agent on more than one occasion.

Not that it really mattered. She was just a teensy bit past the point of no return. A big teensy bit.

When she had woken up the morning after the Tony-was-an-idiot-but-she-ended-up-making-out-with -Clint-on-the-roof incident (or at least that's what she was calling it) Clint had already been sent away on some errand and Darcy was informed by a polite Steve.

A week later and she still hadn't heard from him. She rested her head in her hands and let out a quiet groan. It was getting increasingly difficult to concentrate on her mundane work. And she knew she was acting like a needy little schoolgirl, but damn it, she'd just captured some ground with Clint and now he was God knows where for SHIELD knows how long.

Jane rested a hand on her shoulder from behind, causing her to jump. The last thing she needed was Jane bitching at her about her work.

She opened her mouth to form some sort of excuse, but Jane spoke first.

"I know what it's like, Darcy. I hate when Thor is away."

Darcy gaped at her for a minute. Wow, that was nice.

"But focusing on work helps," she continued.

Darcy rolled her eyes. She should've seen that coming. "Yeah, yeah. I'm working on it," she muttered, scooting out from under Jane's hand.

"How about if you come and hang out with Thor and I tonight?" Jane suggested.

Darcy made a noncommittal noise. She didn't really want to be the third leg... Or arm or wheel or whatever. She appreciated the effort Jane was making, though and was hesitant to turn her down so bluntly.

"I'll think about it," she said, turning back to her desk. She hoped that if Jane thought she was going back to work then she'd simply drop it.

And she was right.

Half an hour later she'd muddled through a report and clicked the "print" button.

The printer let out a long tone, and Darcy let out a long groan. Pizza on a stick she was having a freakin fantastic day. Not. And now she wanted pizza, damn it.

She glared at the printer screen which declared, quite dimly, that it was out of paper.

"Damn it," she muttered, thinking about the trek to the supply room. She just wanted to huddle under her desk and take a nap, preferably only to wake up when Clint returned.

With a loud sigh, she trudged from the room, dragging her feet like a petulant child.

She was almost, _almost_, at the supply room when it happened. Natasha appeared out of nowhere (seriously, how does she do that?) and blocked Darcy's path.

"Darcy, I've been looking for you," her tone seemed to suggest otherwise but Darcy ignored it.

"Here I am," she replied.

"Clint is on his way in-"

"He is?" Yeah, she wasn't even going to pretend she wasn't excited. She was damn ecstatic. And she probably shouldn't have interrupted Natasha. She took a quick step backwards in case.

Natasha smiled at her like she was a child getting excited over a cheap toy.

"Yes. However, he's wiped. I thought you might want to greet him with his favorite coffee from across the street."

Oh. She was helping. Again. Cool. "Yeah, okay." She tried not to sound too eager but she'd bring the man a freakin moonpie if he wanted one. From the moon.

She knew that coffee shop. She liked to sit there and watch for smokin hot SHIELD agents to come... And go. But once again, Natasha knew something about Clint that she didn't.

Like that he drank coffee. And what kind.

Natasha made no move to leave and she realized that she was waiting to be asked.

"What kind of coffee?"

"Bold, black." She was quick to answer and then she was gone.

Darcy resisted the urge to squeal - she was going to see Clint _today_! - and headed for the nearest elevator. She might even splash out and get him a bagel. She might eat it before he gets back but it's the thought that counts, right?

She had made it most of the way there when she realized she left her wallet in her purse under her desk. "Crap on a stick," she growled. She really wanted to throw her hands up and scream at the heavens but for some reason that always made her feel like she was screaming at Asgardians. And frankly, she didn't want to whine Loki's direction.

Or Thor's for that matter.

With a sigh, she turned back and, surprisingly, ran smack into a chest.

She stumbled backward and looked up to see a middle aged man with a thin, sagging face.

"Are you Darcy?" He asked. His brow was furrowed and his forehead creased. He looked quite distressed.

Darcy was skeptical. Who the hell was this guy?

"Who wants to know?"

"It's Clint..." The guy started, jabbing a thumb toward the alley that ran beside the coffee shop.

That got her attention. "Clint?"

"I think he's hurt," the mystery man turned and headed into the alley, leaving Darcy little choice but to follow.

Well truthfully, she had a choice. She could've walked away, but she didn't. She couldn't. It was Clint.

She stepped into the alley and peered down at the dead end. She didn't see anyone. Not Clint. Not the weird guy. No one.

She felt like she was losing her mind for what must've been the sixth time this week. Just to be sure, she hesitantly called out Clint's name.

In response, she heard chuckling behind her. She spun around to see the weird, old guy looking much more sinister than he had moments ago. And that's when she began to worry.

* * *

The only thing keeping Clint from bashing his head into the wall until he was blissfully unconscious, was the thought of seeing Darcy.

But he couldn't chase away this nagging feeling he was having. Like the one that told him to stay away from her in the first place.

So when he entered SHIELD and encountered a grim faced Natasha, his stomach bottomed out.

"What happened?" he asked calmly. It was nothing more than a facade, he was, as Darcy would say, freaking the freak out, on the inside.

"We have reason to believe that Darcy's been taken," she answered in a level tone.

"By who?" he demanded.

Natasha took a visible breath, "Trickshot."

"Are you fucking me?" Clint's voice was getting louder each time he spoke. "He's dead."

"He's not."

"How the fuck do _you_ know?"

In reply, Natasha simply handed him a piece of paper the size of an index card. It said, "Let's Play," and had an address on the back.

Clint furiously ran a hand through his hair. And then he stopped and looked up at Natasha. He narrowed his eyes.

"How do you know this is Trick?"

"It's what he used to say to you."

Clint shook his head, "No, I never told you that."

She touched his arm, "Yes, you did."

He shook her arm off, "_No_, I didn't."

"You're upset, you don't remember. It was after Loki..." she trailed off and let her gaze settle somewhere behind him.

"I would remember," he insisted.

Natasha put a hand on her hip, "It doesn't matter. What are you going to do about Darcy?"

Clint turned the piece of paper over and over in his hand. Why couldn't he put the pieces together. They were staring him in the face. Something wasn't right, he knew it.

Staring him in the face...

He glanced up at Natasha, "Tasha if you've ever told me the truth, tell me now. What's going on?"

"I've told y-"

He grabbed her by the arms and stared at her so intently that only Natasha could hold his gaze and not break. He grit his teeth together, "Tell me."

"You're wasting time."

"Fuck you, Natasha," he growled and turned away.

He would figure it out on the way if that's what it took. But if Natasha was lying to him, and he was almost certain she was, then he was going to have a hard time not putting an arrow through her eye.

* * *

_Hey all! Worry not, I plan on keeping my weekly update schedule if at all possible. I already know what happens so it shouldn't be difficult. _

_I'm glad you're all still with me. I love hearing from you and to know that some of you wait anxiously for my updates is awesome!_

_Until next time..._

_Cheers!_


	14. Chapter 14

**Party Tricks**

**14**

* * *

Clint wasted no time assembling his weapons. He grabbed his bow, threw a quiver full of arrows on his back, put a gun in his holster and sheathed a knife on his belt. Armed with Trick's note in his back pocket, he headed for the exit.

Natasha stepped in his path.

"Move, Nat," he growled.

"Clint, you have to bring Trick in."

"Oh, now you wanna talk?" He shoved past her but she grabbed his arm.

"I needed you to calm down. This isn't like you, Barton. Don't lose your head."

He yanked his arm from her grasp, "You're in on this, so why don't you just tell me what I need to know."

She took a breath and looked at him sideways, "You need to bring Trick in."

"Like hell I do."

"Clint, listen to me. Trick has been on your tail for months. We've kept him at bay, but now Fury wants you to bring him in."

"Why?"

Natasha glanced at the floor. She knew he wasn't going to like this. "To turn him."

"Fury'll be a lucky bastard if I bring his corpse in. And you, Nat," he shook his head, "if I find out you set Darcy up for this..." He ground his teeth together and shoved past her a final time. He was sure that words couldn't convey the rage he felt toward Romanov at that moment, much less toward Fury. But for now, he would simply have to direct it at Trick.

* * *

Darcy had put up one hell of a fight for an unarmed girl. I mean, she didn't even have her purse to whack the creepy old guy with, much less her tazer. Damn it, how could she have gone out without her tazer? It was definitely Clint's fault. Or maybe Natasha's. Possibly Jane's when she thought about it. She was always telling her how unladylike it was to go around threatening to taze people.

Look where that had gotten her.

Tied to a damn chair in the middle of some dark, musty, abandoned building. She was like a walking cliche now. Or sitting. Whatever.

I mean seriously. An abandoned building? Why couldn't kidnappers take their victims to shopping malls or something. That would be awesome, right?

Attention shoppers! Today we have Miss Darcy Lewis on display. She was kidnapped for no good reason. She just wanted to greet her superhero boyfriend with coffee and look how well that turned out!

Okay, so she could see why they chose abandoned buildings, but sometimes her life felt like a movie. Sometimes it was like a really awesome romantic comedy where she was kissing superheroes on the roof and being interrupted by other superheroes. And sometimes it was like a bad sci fi movie where really hot aliens try to take over the Earth. Other times... It was this. One of those confusing movies where you have no idea where the lead character is or how they ended up there and you just really wish they'd stop internally monologuing long enough to figure it out.

Honestly, she was just trying to keep from freaking out. Take charge, Darcy!

She raised her head up and squinted into the darkness. She didn't remember it being that late out which led her to believe that Mr. Devious Creepypants had blacked out the windows somehow. If there were windows. She couldn't be sure.

Seriously, it was like pitch black in there.

"Hello," she called out. Her voice echoed through what promised to be a very large, very empty building. "Creepy dude, are you there?"

His laughter filled the space, but it was far from menacing. It sputtered, came and went with a coarseness that could come from nothing but age.

"Oh boy," she muttered to herself.

Out of nowhere, a light flickered on above her head and she could see now that Mr. Devious Creepypants was standing over her.

"Hello, dear Darcy," he grinned, revealing a set of mostly rotting teeth. A foul stench accompanied them, making Darcy cough.

"Dude, tictac," she said, turning her head.

"This isn't a joke," he demanded.

"Yeah, I got that. Tied to a chair, here."

Darcy was scared shitless but being scared was apparently making her witty and sarcastic. She liked to think she was calling on some awesome defense mechanism.

"So, Darcy, what shall we do with you?" He traced a finger along her jaw.

"How bout you tell me your name so I can stop mentally referring to you as Mr. Devious Creepypants."

Mr. Devious Creepypant's jaw flexed, "Trick."

Darcy scoffed, "Your mother give you that name?"

"The carnival did."

Darcy straightened a little. The carnival?

"You and I, Darcy, are going to wait here until your little boyfriend shows up, and when he does, I'm gonna kill him like I should've a long time ago."

Clint. The carnival. It couldn't be a coincidence.

And damn it, she was bait. That was so... Cliche. Why couldn't the guy ever be bait? Or better yet, why have bait at all? Ugh.

Okay, focus Darcy. Get him talking.

"How do you know Clint?" she asked slowly. God, it sounded like they were chatting at a party and not as kidnapper and kidnappee.

"Oh, he didn't tell you?" Trick moved closer and smirked (seriously, tictac), "I taught him everything he knows."

* * *

Clint's mind was a raging storm as he made his way to meet Trick. As much as he hated it, Natasha was right, he needed to calm down if he was going to figure this out.

He knew he had all the pieces of the puzzle now, he just needed to put them together.

His little birdie, Natasha, she had helped with setting Darcy up with him. And he had felt like something was... Amiss.

What else?

The break in at Darcy's apartment. It had been too clean, too thorough. Too... Professional.

Her week off coinciding with his week of ordered rest...

And now apparently someone had set her up to get kidnapped. Someone he strongly suspected was Natasha.

Taken together it did seem a little concocted. But why? Why would Natasha or even SHIELD go to that trouble to get him and Darcy together.

Was their sole purpose to bait his old mentor?

It didn't make much sense, honestly. But either way, it was clear that Natasha had been in on it. And she was, no doubt, well aware that Darcy would be in danger at some point.

As far as Clint was concerned, that was inexcusable.

He locked that thought away for now. He couldn't afford distractions at the moment. His job now was to rescue Darcy.

* * *

_Hey! I know it's nearly Thursday but I just finished this chapter because I've been quite ill all week. Hopefully it meets your expectations as I'm a bit too drugged up to tell if it meets mine :P_

_Darcy is one snarky gal, eh? I didn't want her capture to be too serious because honestly, that's no fun! _

_As always, let me know what you think. (I know, I know... No Clint/Darce in this chapter either! Sigh.)_

_Until next time..._

_Cheers!_


	15. Chapter 15

**Party Tricks**

**15**

* * *

Darcy was beyond anxious by the time Clint showed. Trick seemed to be growing impatient and had taken to throwing knives in her direction. In the dark.

It was unnerving to say the least.

It wasn't that she thought Clint wasn't going to come. She just wondered if she'd still be in one piece when he got there.

But finally, _finally_, one of the knives Trick threw came flying back.

Darcy let out a very embarrassing squeal as it zipped by her head. But seriously, she wasn't expecting it to come back! It wasn't a freakin boomerang.

Trick only chuckled, "Hawkeye, how unkind to keep your lady waiting."

Darcy struggled against her restraints. "Clint, be careful!"

"Aww, how sweet," Trick crooned. "Perhaps I'll be kind enough to spare you the privilege of watching your precious Hawk die."

Without warning, an arrow flew by Darcy's head and lodged itself in Trick's thigh.

"You missed," he grunted, trying, but quite failing, at sounding amused.

"I don't miss," Clint spoke for the first time and Darcy was surprised to hear that he was standing directly behind her now. He placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Ah, but are you certain you're shooting for the right side this time?"

Clint's hand tensed on Darcy's shoulder. Inside she was screaming, "Shut up you toad breathed weirdo!" But outside she was frozen, waiting.

Clint stepped forward and nocked another arrow. "My informant says you've been tailing me for quite a while..."

Trick stepped back.

"She also says I shouldn't kill you..." He continued walking forward. "I find that a little hard to swallow. What do you think, Darcy?"

He continued advancing on his old mentor who seemed just as intent on retreating.

But Darcy didn't answer, her eyes were glued on Trick, who had backed up under the only light in the whole building. And who let loose a wicked smirk on his face.

"Clint!" She screamed.

But it was too late, he had tripped the wire.

* * *

Tony was trying to decide the most reasonable way to simultaneously impress and gain Pepper's forgiveness when he walked into his tower and was attacked by gushy females.

Their mouths were moving, but honestly all he heard was noise with his name in there somewhere.

"Okay, ladies, there's enough of me to go around. One at a time."

He pointed a finger at Pepper, because the other woman was Jane and she looked much more emotional. He didn't think her blubbering would be useful.

"Darcy's been kidnapped, Clint has gone after her." Succinct. That was why he loved that woman.

"Where?" He asked, striding across the room toward his suit. This could definitely work. Impress Pepper, gain forgiveness, save fellow superhero _and_ adopted sister. He was killing like a freakin flock of birds with one stone. It was so his day!

"We don't know," Pepper said hesitantly.

Tony groaned inwardly.

"But Natasha does," Jane added.

Oh goodie. He did so love to chat with the scary red headed assassin.

* * *

Darcy would be lying if she said she hadn't at least considered the fact that Clint could be "the one." Yes, it was early, and yes they hadn't even spent twenty four hours in each other's presence since officially being a couple, but she was a girl and these things simply happened! Especially when one had to wait an agonizing week to see her brand spanking new boyfriend.

But now she realized that she would never know because this crazy carnival guy was about to cut both of their lives tragically short.

And for what, she honestly didn't know but things were certainly looking abysmal. Clint was suitably restrained and still quite unconscious after his run in with a large piece of steel.

And Darcy? Well she was still stuck in the same damn chair.

"What an amateur," Trick mused to himself. "So damn cocky, too." After taking care of Clint, he had ripped the arrow out of his thigh and carelessly discarded it on the floor. He was one tough bastard, Darcy had to give him that.

He kicked Clint's prone form, which she could just barely make out in the poorly lit room. "Wake up!" he ordered. "There's no fun in killing an unconscious corpse."

Darcy's heart leapt for a moment. Maybe this could buy them time. For what, she didn't know. If Clint didn't bring back up then she had to wonder who else even knew of her predicament. But still, hope surged within her. Just don't wake up, Clint!

Trick turned his gaze on her and smiled in a creepy fashion. "Perhaps I'll pass the time with you, dear Darcy. You've served your purpose already."

He closed the space between them and stroked her chin with the knife in his hand.

"Or maybe you'd prefer a bul-"

"Wait," Darcy interrupted him, "Do you hear music?"

Trick's face crumpled into an irritated frown, "Stop stalling you..." he trailed off. He could hear it now, music.

Darcy grinned with relief, "AC/DC." Thank God! She felt like laughing. There was only one guy that brought his own music to the party: Tony Stark.

Only moments later, he burst into the building and blasted Trick before he'd even had a chance to recover his wits. He glanced at Darcy, "Sorry I'm late."

"You're perfect," she said, her voice overflowing with relief.

"That's what I keep trying to tell everyone," Tony quipped.

He restrained Trick before letting Darcy loose, just in case, but the weirdo seemed pretty beat up and was still knocked out when Darcy rushed over to see Clint.

"Clint," she breathed out, stroking his hair back as Tony undid his restraints. He was so still, almost lifeless.

Darcy's stomach constricted as she spoke more frantically this time, "Clint, it's okay, you can wake up now."

* * *

_So I'm really sorry about the delay but this is my first day off since the last time I updated so I simply hadn't had the chance to finish this chapter._

_Hopefully you're all still on board. There's only a few chapters left and then we'll start discussing sequels if there's enough interest. _

_Review!_

_Until next time..._

_Cheers!_


	16. Chapter 16

**Party Tricks **

**16**

* * *

Clint Barton's life had never been easy. Like many, he had had his particularly low moments. But never had he felt more like crawling into a hole and ending his life than right now at this very moment.

He knew Darcy was perched over him and he knew he should open his eyes, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He was mortified.

Mortified that he had been so stupid, that he had needed to feign unconsciousness just to prolong his pathetic life, that he was unable to save Darcy, that Stark had been the one to do so.

He almost wished that Trick _had_ killed him. It would be easier.

Deciding not to prolong the inevitable, he let his eyes flutter open and caught sight of a very worried Darcy.

"Jesus, Barton, what did you get yourself into," Tony muttered. "You should've said something."

He didn't know what to say to that, but it didn't matter. Darcy had pressed her face into his chest and wrapped her arms around him.

"You're okay," she whispered with relief and Clint felt the guilt settle over him like a heavy blanket.

He pushed it aside, it had gotten easier over the years, and eased her away. He needed to do something, anything. He needed to take action, however belated.

He stumbled in the dark as he reached for his bow. He shakily nocked an arrow and settled the tip right on Trick's heart.

"Clint, wait!" Darcy pleaded.

"Barton," Tony said quietly, "Natasha said to remind you to _bring him in_."

"Leave Stark," he growled.

Tony threw his hands up in a placating gesture, but vacated the building with a quiet, "I'll just be outside."

"Clint," Darcy started.

"Go with Stark," he ordered. "I don't want you to see this."

Darcy blinked at him and crossed her arms over her chest. "No."

Barton shrugged angrily and drew his bow back.

Darcy gasped, "Clint I know you're angry, but Natash-"

Clint swung his head around to face her, "Do you know what they'll do with him? Do you? They'll make him a fucking SHIELD agent. They'll make him one of me."

Darcy nodded, for lack of a reply.

"Do you know what he did to me?" He shook his head. "No, it doesn't even matter because he hurt _you_. And he has to pay."

"Clint," she said shakily, resting a hand on his arm. "Just do this one thing... for me. Just bring him in and then he'll be SHIELD's problem." It was hard to explain why she was against killing this man, who was, for all intents and purposes, a villain. But she suddenly felt quite strongly about not murdering him. Natasha had been so insistent and she couldn't help thinking there must be a reason the assassin was against an assassination.

He stared at her a long moment before he threw his bow on the ground and let out a frustrated grunt. He was so angry at himself. He wanted to... Well, he wanted to kill Trick.

"Stark!" He yelled. "Haul this piece of garbage to SHIELD. Tell em it's the last of their orders I intend to follow."

He looked at Darcy, opened his mouth to say something. But he ended up looking away and ran a quick hand through his hair. "Take Darcy too."

"Clint, don't do this." It was obvious he intended to hole himself up, runaway, or worse. She didn't want to be pushed away. "I need you," she pleaded. And she knew he needed her.

Clint let out a short bark of laughter, "I'm the last thing you need." And then he disappeared into the darkness.

* * *

Darcy wasn't sure why she was crying. If it was for Clint or herself, both? Maybe because she had essentially just been kidnapped and survived. Definitely because she felt she had lost Clint before she'd even had him.

And damn did that sound angsty in her head, but it was true.

Jane and Pepper were fussing over her as they coaxed the tale out of her.

She sniffed and wiped at her cheek, "Then I saw Trick grin like... like he had won and I knew something bad was about to happen. There was some kind of explosion right under Clint and then Trick hit him with a big piece of metal or something." She choked out a sob, "I thought he was dead." Then quieter, "I thought we were dead."

She felt stupid for crying at the same time that she wished Clint were consoling her.

"Then Tony showed up," Jane supplied helpfully, encouraging her to finish the story.

"After a while..." Darcy said. She was silent for a long moment, then, "And now Clint is God knows where and I'll be lucky if he ever speaks to me again." She buried her face in her hands as new tears came.

"He will," Pepper said confidently. "He's just feeling like it's his fault. It's a guy thing. Tony went through it once."

Darcy let out a hoarse laugh, "Tony thought something was his fault?"

"Hard to believe, I know," Pepper smiled and pushed Darcy's hair from her face. "He won't be able to stay away."

"Maybe," Darcy said, but it was halfhearted.

* * *

Fury chuckled to himself, "Well done, Barton, well done. I admit he had me worried."

Natasha nodded her agreement.

"I must commend your plan, Romanov. It was efficient, taking care of that nasty tail Barton had _and_ testing his allegiance."

"Thank you, sir," she nodded. "Mr. Chisholm is in custody."

"And Barton?"

"No one has heard from him since the completion of the mission."

"How much information did he acquire?"

Natasha shifted, "More than enough."

"He'll come around."

Romanov nodded, but she wasn't so sure. Not this time. She wasn't sure Barton would ever forgive what she had done this time.

She just hoped he would let her explain.

* * *

_Ok! A wee bit late again but I've managed to maintain weekly updates through the entire fic thus far, so I'm pleased :)_

_Ill put the next chapter up as soon as I finish, even if its tomorrow. But only if you review ;)_

_Until next time..._

_Cheers!_


	17. Chapter 17

**Party Tricks**

**17**

* * *

Clint was off the grid for three full days. He knew it was unfair to Darcy, but he couldn't help himself. It had to be done. He had to think.

And besides, he told himself, the best thing for her was distance from him. No matter what she thought.

In those three days he had managed to piece together the entire puzzle. The way Natasha had conned him into falling for... No, not falling for. Into... Into being _interested_ in Darcy. The way she manipulated them to bring them closer together. Having Darcy's apartment broken into so they would be nearer. Their time off. Even Stark's announcement to make it public for Trick.

All of it was planned. Every last bit was just a mission. He was just a pawn.

Which brought him to his next revelation: He couldn't work for SHIELD anymore. He couldn't be used any longer. It wasn't like they trusted him these days anyway, not after the business with Loki.

Nowadays they just rained shit on him and he was done with it. He was done.

As for Natasha, he wasn't sure what to do. He felt betrayed, a feeling he was all too familiar with. But he'd just never expected it from Nat.

That just left Darcy. What must she think of him? Had she figured it out too? That their relationship was just a setup? Did she think he was in on it?

He knew that what he felt for her was real, despite the circumstances. But he couldn't ignore the fact that his presence put her in danger. And that was something he didn't think he could live with.

* * *

After his self imposed exile, he decided he had three stops to make before he took a very long, very much needed vacation.

Stop one: Director Fury.

"You one-eyed bastard!" Clint raged into Fury's office. "How could you use Darcy that way? She's not even one of your expendable agents!"

"Clint," Fury simply inclined his head as if Barton had merely said hello. Or perhaps he knew this meeting was inevitable.

"Have I fallen so low in your eyes?" He continued. "Or was Trick so valuable that you risked an innocent woman's life?"

Fury waited patiently until he thought it wise to speak. "Trick was a liability. Not only was he out for your blood, but he knows too much about you. As for your estimation, you have risen to your former glory, Agent Barton."

"I'm so honored to have the fucking trust I should've had all along," he spat. "But it's too late, I don't give a rat's ass what you think of me. I'm done."

Fury raised an eyebrow, "Done?"

"With you. With SHIELD. With being fucked over for no damn reason."

"And what of Darcy?" Fury asked calmly.

Clint ignored him. "Consider this my resignation."

Fury stood, settled his hands on his desk. "Accept that this was for your own protection. Buck never intended to harm Darcy."

"And what if he had? What if he had killed us both?"

"I have faith in you, Barton."

Clint shook his head, "No, this was just some sick game to see whose side I was on. Well you have your answer: No one's."

"Barton-"

"Maybe you should check the color of your own eyes this time," Clint snapped, before slamming the door shut behind him.

* * *

Stop two: Natasha.

It was actually Natasha that found him, which he hated, since he wasn't altogether prepared to speak with her.

"Clint, please hear me out before you scream or kill me or shut me out or whatever it is you're gonna do," she pleaded in a manner so unlike her normal put-together demeanor.

Clint ground his teeth together and tried to remind himself he owed her this. She had done so much for him over the years.

"I get it, you were just following orders," he bit out, a bit more sharply than he intended.

"No," she admitted, "It was my idea, the whole thing."

"Fuck you, Natasha," he growled.

She sighed audibly and Clint turned to leave.

"I was trying to help you," she continued. "I knew Fury was coming down hard on you since... the Chitauri invasion."

Clint paused and Natasha saw that as her cue to continue. "I saw the missions he gave you. The subtle way he sent you away when he needed the Avengers."

She saw the archer swallow roughly, his shoulders tense as if she had just discovered some secret about him.

"Then with Chisholm on your ass I just... got an idea. A way to remind Fury you're the best damn agent he's ever had. And Darcy, she just completed the picture. And I know you'll never forgive me, but none of this is Darcy's fault and she really does care for you."

Clint still didn't face her, "So you chose her? She was just part of your plan?"

"No, Clint. She chose you."

"You're right," he agreed, making Natasha's heart jolt with the thought that he was actually listening to her. Then he finished, "It'll be a hell of a long time before I forgive you."

* * *

Stop Three: Darcy

Clint debated not even speaking with Darcy. What good could it do? He should just let her think what she thinks. Whatever keeps her safely away from him.

But there was a tiny part of him that wanted her to think good of him. To know he did his best to protect her. And maybe that was selfish, but he couldn't shake it.

So he prepared himself. Armed to the ears with resolve, he found her -of all places- at the shooting range downstairs in the Avenger's tower.

She was shooting her pink, Hello Kitty bow at a target that already appeared to have every arrow within a five mile radius embedded in it. He couldn't help a surge of pride at her skill. He had taught her that, and she was still practicing.

He had the feeling she was aware of his presence, but she ignored it.

Clint took a breath and decided to open with what was most important, "I'm sorry," he said, ignoring the slight waver in his voice.

Darcy nocked another arrow and drew back.

"Darcy," he prompted.

She released, launching the arrow at the crowded target. "Where have you been?" she asked stiffly.

"Away," he said vaguely.

"Fine, whatever. Don't tell me."

"Darcy, it's not important-"

"I said fine," she snapped. She set her bow down and headed down the lane to collect her many arrows.

Clint swallowed roughly. He hadn't thought this would be easy, but conversations were so much tougher when you cared about the outcome.

He figured the best thing he could do was have patience, so he simply waited.

Eventually Darcy came back with a quiver and a fistful of arrows.

"You're getting good," Clint offered.

"Is that what you came here to tell me?" she asked, laying her handful of arrows down.

Clint had never felt so out of his depth. It was like he couldn't keep his head above the water. He suddenly wanted to say whatever would make Darcy wrap her arms around him, but he didn't know what that was.

"No, of course not," he said awkwardly. "I came to apologize."

For the first time, she looked at him, but it wasn't with the sweet, sparkling eyes she normally did. It was with a dark, hurt gaze as she planted a hand on her hip. "For what?"

"F-For," Clint faltered, "For putting you in danger."

"Ok," she said, and turned around to fiddle with her quiver.

"I knew what I was getting you into. I should've warned you. I should've-"

"Ok," she cut him off.

"That was the wrong answer," he guessed, but it came out more like a statement.

"Bingo, Sherlock."

"You don't care that I put you in danger."

"Ohh, you're on a roll," she bit out.

"I'm sorry I wasn't able to save you," his eyes found the floor. Shame was written all over him. "I'll hate myself for that for the rest of my life. I was stupid."

She turned around and stared at him so hard he thought she was about to slap him or yell at him. But she just shook her head, "You _are_ stupid."

It was as good as a slap in the face. Clint couldn't do anything but look at her with hurt and confusion warring in his eyes.

"Are you sorry for leaving when I needed you? Are you sorry for making me worry that you had... God! I don't know. I didn't know where you were! Did you ever think that maybe _you_ were the one I wanted to talk to. Not Jane or Pepper or freakin Steve!" She was screaming now as tears threatened to fall.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. It felt moot now, like a child forced to apologize. But he meant it more than he ever had.

"Did you care that I needed you and you weren't there?" She was crying now, her voice lowered.

"I..." Of course he cared. He'd never meant to hurt her. But he guessed he hadn't thought of it that way. He'd thought he was doing what needed to be done. He thought distance was the best thing. "I've never had someone need me."

Darcy's eyes softened ever so slightly as she swiped at her tears. "Of course you have."

"Not in a role that wasn't easily filled by the next best agent. I've never been irreplaceable."

"You _are_ irreplaceable. You always have been."

Clint took this as his cue to step closer to her, but she flinched. "Darcy?"

"If you want to be alone, be alone. If you don't want my help, don't want me, just say so. I may not like it but I'll leave you alone. But you can't be in this halfway. You have to accept my help as much as give yours. You can't runaway one minute and expect I'll be okay when you're here the next." Her face was serious, if not blank, as she laid out her terms.

Clint wasn't sure _what_ he wanted at that point. He wanted to be a selfish bastard, promise her the world, and kiss her. But he couldn't do that. So instead, he told her what he thought she needed to know. About their relationship being part of a plot to nab Trick, about everything.

When he finished, Darcy looked unimpressed. "So you don't have _real_ feelings for me? Just fake ones?" Her eyebrows raised as she crossed her arms over her chest and awaited the answer.

"You knew," he stated, but he couldn't be sure just how long she had known. He felt feelings of betrayal start to rise up in him, but he squashed them down.

"Natasha told me. She stressed that none of it was your fault, that you didn't even know."

Clint breathed a sigh of relief. Which he realized did not bode well for him. He cared. He cared too much.

"Answer my question," Darcy demanded.

Clint stepped forward again, and Darcy remained immobile. "Everything I have done was with the best intentions. I was only trying to protect you because the thought of you getting hurt has become my biggest fear. Nothing SHIELD or Natasha or even you can do will ever change that. I never wanted to stay away from you, not since the moment you asked me to flex at that stupid party. I still don't."

He eyed her, trying to gauge her reaction. "I'm not the best at this stuff," he let out a humourless laugh. "Just look at the relationships I've had in my life. You met my mentor."

Darcy sighed and let her arms fall. "So what then?"

Clint swallowed. This whole encounter was not going as he'd planned. He was supposed to apologize and leave. Leave her alone, leave her safe. Instead he was overcome trying to gain her forgiveness, her happiness, her affection. He needed it, he realized.

"I'm so sorry for abandoning you when you needed me most. I'm sorry for pushing you away when I should've pulled you closer. I can't promise that won't be my first instinct in the future, but I promise to try to change that. If..." He took a breath, "If you'll allow me a second chance. Because my feelings for you are more real than anything I've ever felt."

Darcy smiled despite herself. "That was a pretty romantic speech," she said.

Clint was still all seriousness. He was waiting on bated breath, so to speak. "Is that a yes?"

"No," she said, "_This_ is a 'yes.'" And she wrapped her arms around him and kissed him like there was no way she could ever get enough of him.

And maybe she couldn't.

* * *

_Aww!_

_Okay guys this is the time where we start discussing sequels. There's one more chapter that will more or less wrap up._

_But what do you guys think? Is Clint done with SHIELD? What will Darcy say? How about the Avengers? What became of Trick?_

_If yes to a sequel do you want a continuous story or a series of one shots? What stuff would you like to see Clint and Darcy encounter? I'll definitely explore the issue with Natasha which is not likely to be resolved quickly. What else?_

_As always, review. I'm especially interested to hear what you think of the Clint/Darcy scene. _

_Until next time..._

_Cheers!_


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